Throughout the course of the year, senior Kenny Corey has been dominant on the mound for the Willow Glen Rams. He has thrown multiple complete games, pitched over 40 innings and entered the Central Coast Section tournament with an earned run average below one.
However, it wasn’t until Saturday when his teammates needed him most. And after holding Burlingame to three hits and one run through seven innings, Corey could finally exhale as he led his team to a 6-1 win.
With this victory, the No. 5 seeded Rams (19-10) advance to the Central Coast Section semifinals Thursday (7 pm) at Municipal Stadium in San Jose, where they will face top-seeded and Blossom Valley Athletic League rival Westmont (21-8), a 2-0 winner against Overfelt.
“Kenny’s a fighter,” Willow Glen captain John Riley said. “He’s pitched many complete games this year and he always seems to come through no matter what.”
Early on, however, Corey and the Rams were put to the test as Burlingame senior Grant Goodman put his team up 1-0 with a bloop single to left. But the Panthers were unable to carry that momentum into the bottom half of the frame.
When Goodman injured his elbow in the final game of the regular season, Burlingame coach Shawn Scott faced the daunting task of trying to figure out who should be the next starting pitcher. After much thought, Scott elected to have senior Vince Arobio, his usual closer, pitch the first. Placed in an unusual spot, Arobio struggled to find his groove in the first inning.
The bottom of the first was highlighted by a crushing home run from Riley, the Willow Glen captain. On an 0-2 count with runners on first and second, Riley clobbered a curve ball far above the left-field wall to give the Rams a 3-1 lead.
“I think the fact that he [Riley] hit the home run let everybody breathe,” Willow Glen head coach Michael Riley said.
Although the big hit by Riley was certainly one of the game's turning points, the Panthers felt that the game slipping away after they made a few defensive mistakes. Later in the bottom of the first, for example, Willow Glen added a run on a pair of errors to take a 4-1 lead.
“It was the errors that broke our backs,” Scott said.
While the Panthers had trouble on defense, they also struggled at the plate. Burlingame went 1-for-10 with runners on base and hit .167 with runners in scoring position. Because of numerous defensive mishaps and struggles to cash in on opportunities, the Panthers were unable to cut into the Willow Glen lead, which was increased to 6-1 with single runs in the fifth and sixth.
Despite the tough loss, Scott is still proud of how much his team has accomplished. The Panthers finished second in one of the most competitive divisions in California and won a game in the opening round of the CCS tournament.
“They weren’t a team early, but along the way they became a team,” Scott said. “I’m very proud of our guys.”
As the Panthers end their season on a sour note, the Rams hope to continue playing at their best in order to get a CCS championship ring. To have a shot at capturing the tournament title, they will need to win their next game this Thursday. While numerous Rams addressed the need to remain sound defensively, some also stressed the importance of not getting overwhelmed by a larger venue.
“We can’t be too nervous playing at the Muni [Municipal Stadium],” Corey said. “We’re gonna have to play our game.”
Justin Bruce will most likely get the start for the Rams in their quest for a trip to the final round.
