BELMONT - With one out in the bottom of the seventh inning, nobody on base and trailing by a run, host Carlmont rallied to stun Palo Alto on Saturday afternoon. Tyler DeSmidt's double to right field capped a quick rally, scoring both Sean Vanderaa and David Bedrosian for the 3-2 walk-off victory over the Vikings in non-league action between teams battling for playoff position.
Palo Alto had taken a 2-1 lead in the top of the fifth inning, on Josh Kasevich's one-out single to left, scoring both H Roh and Paul Thie to erase a one-run deficit and turn it into a one-run lead. That was Carlmont decided to make a pitching change, bringing in Aiden Woodring. The move paid dividends, as Woodring retired all eight Palo Alto batters he faced to ultimately earn his first victory of the season.
Carlmont had taken an early 1-0 lead, when David Friis doubled in Bedrosian in the bottom of the first inning. Friis would finish the game with a pair of doubles, while Bedrosian went 3-for-3 and scored the first and last runs of the game. The Scots improved to 12-10 overall with the win.
Leland holds off Los Altos
The final game of a four-game week proved elusive for Los Altos, as two Leland pitchers managed to contain the potent Eagles' offense on Friday afternoon at Leland High, as the Chargers emerged with a 4-2 victory.
The Chargers started hot as Kekoa Lopez walked with one out in the first. Trevor Johannes doubled a ground ball just over third base to set runners at second and third. Carson Yates then hit a ground ball hit inside the foul line down third base to score both runners and make the score 2-0. Ryan Baum then settled in to shutout the Chargers for the rest of his outing.
Los Altos cut the lead in half, when Juan Angulo led off the inning by blasting a 2-0 offering from Leland starter Trevor Soe. After a lineout to deep center and a strikeout, Aaron Parker doubled, missing another home run by a foot as it clanged off the raised left field fence instead of clearing the shorter center field fence. Aaron Parker advanced to third on a wild pitch and Ben Parker drew a walk and stole second to give the Eagles second and third and a chance to take the lead. Soe, however, managed to induce a flyout to right field to end the threat. Soe gave way to Yates on the mound as Yates contained the Eagles in innings five and six.
Leland got insurance in the sixth off reliever Zach Fuchs as Calvin Hsiao doubled with one out. Ryan Wohl then hit a 15-foot grounder off the plate that resulted a bad throw and Wohl safe at first with a pinch runner advancing to third. With the top of the lineup up, Fuchs struck out one batter but allowed Lopez a soft liner that found its way into left field to plate two. The Eagles threw out Lopez attempting to take second on the relay from the outfield.
With the score now 4-1, and the Eagles down to their last three outs, Yates got the first two hitters. Aidan Brenner stepped up and hit a 1-0 offering 350 feet to make the score 4-2. With the dangerous Parker Brothers one batter from getting a chance to do more damage, Baum's fly ball in foul territory was grabbed in an outstanding play by Leland third baseman Michael Garcia, via an over the shoulder catch to end the game. The loss ended Los Altos' 13-game winning streak.
"Fatigue is not an excuse but it appeared to be a factor, especially mentally at the plate. Several of our at-bats and our general approach against their pitchers could have been better. Leland played a great game and deserved the victory," said Los Altos coach Gabe Stewart. "Hopefully this will be a springboard to keep working hard in practice and to take nothing for granted. The team spirit is solid and we can build off a four game week in which we went 3-1."
Around the horn
The King's Academy scored nine times in the bottom of the first inning on Monday, racing to a 15-8 win over Westmont. Trenton Farnham earned the win for the Knights, while Garrett Plata had three hits.
Jacob Leon, Lawrence Garza and Moses Pena each had two hits to pace San Jose to a 10-4 win over Andrew Hill.
Ann Sobrato remained in first place in the BVAL-Santa Teresa with a 8-1 win over Independence on Monday. Junior Cooper Callison tripled to drive in two runs, while sophomore William Conn went 3-for-3 with two runs scored. Conn also struck out seven during five shutout innings on the mound.
Seniors Aran Cox and Jared Norris each had two hits, with Cox driving in three runs, as Mountain View cruised past Menlo on Monday, 12-1. The Spartans stayed red-hot with the win and got a complete game performance on the mound from sophomore Gabe Barrett, who struck out seven and allowed just two hits.
