BLAZER BASH: Chen, Aggies post blowouts to begin Bash

Standing 6 feet 7 inches, Arbor View junior right-hander Ryan Chen is an imposing figure on the mound.

He also brings some pop to the Aggies’ batting lineup, and he put both qualities on display to begin the Blazer Spring Bash tournament Monday.

Chen was 2-for-3 with a home run and two RBIs in a 13-0, five-inning home victory over Arleta (Calif.), then pitched a six-inning two-hitter with five strikeouts in a 14-1 rout of Carson (Calif.) at Las Vegas High.

“He had a great day,” Arbor View coach Chris Martinez said. “He’s been patient waiting his turn to get on the mound, and every time, he’s thrown the ball extremely well for us. He’s been swinging the bat very well as well, working hard every day. I’m proud of him.”

Chen said the Aggies (15-2) should gain momentum by starting the tournament with a pair of run-rule victories over California teams.

“You 10-run two good California teams, you start to feel like you’ve got more confidence,” he said.

Wyatt Burge threw a five-inning three-hitter with two strikeouts in the win over Arleta, and he had plenty of offensive support. Evan McMahan and Tyler Garrison each had a double and a triple as part of the Aggies’ 15-hit attack.

Against Carson, Chen got in a bases-loaded jam with two outs in the first inning, but struck out Isaias Pulido to end the threat. Chen cruised after that.

“I struggled a little bit in the first inning locating my fastball, then I kind of located it and got them off balance,” Chen said. “I worked a lot of ground balls. It was good defense.”

Arbor View scored 10 runs and sent 15 batters to the plate in the top of the sixth to put the run rule into effect.

Brandon LaPointe had two doubles, an RBI and scored twice. Adam Koutz, the Aggies’ No. 9 hitter, was 3-for-3 with two RBIs.

Basic 7, Garfield (Calif.) 2 — At Foothill, Dean Gettman pitched a complete game, allowing no earned runs on two hits, as the Wolves defeated the Bulldogs.

Gettman struck out six, and also went 2-for-4 with two doubles and two RBIs.

Tyler Long was 3-for-4 with a triple, two runs and an RBI, and Ryan Blatnik was 2-for-4 with a double and a run for Basic.

Shadow Ridge 13, Banning (Calif.) 7 — At Centennial, Michael Wager was 3-for-4 with a triple to help the Mustangs down the Pilots.

Jake Rooney added a triple and three RBIs for Shadow Ridge, which held on despite committing eight errors.

Foothill 10, Poly (Calif.) 0 — At Foothill, Tyler Van Stone threw a two-hitter with four strikeouts to lead the Falcons to the six-inning win.

Bligh Madris went 3-for-4 with a double and two RBIs to pace the offense.

Foothill 7, Verdugo Hills (Calif.) 3 — At Foothill, Royce Salay went 2-for-3 with two RBIs to lead the Falcons past the Dons.

Dayton Kurian added two hits for Foothill, which took the lead with four runs in the top of the second.

Western 8, Roosevelt (Calif.) 7 — At Cimarron, Jesse Sandoval hit an RBI triple in the bottom of the sixth to give the Warriors the win.

Anthony Chojnacki was 2-for-3 with a double and two RBIs, and Daniel Buzzard went 2-for-2 with a double, a triple and an RBI for Western.

Sierra Vista 12, Monroe (Calif.) 2 — At Sierra Vista, William Silcox was 3-for-4 with a double, three RBIs and two runs to lead the Mountain Lions to an easy win over the Vikings in five innings.

Cole Crosby finished 2-for-4 with two doubles, three runs scored and an RBI, and Derron Davis pitched a complete-game for Sierra Vista.

Sierra Vista 10, San Fernando (Calif.) 9 — At Sierra Vista, Connor Klein hit a three-run triple to tie the game, and scored on a sacrifice fly by Robert Lee in the sixth inning as the Mountain Lions edged the Tigers.

Klein finished 2-for-4 with two runs, and Cole Crosby went 3-for-4 with a double, two runs and two RBIs for Sierra Vista.

Palo Verde 5, Alta (Utah) 3 — At Durango, Grayson Webber allowed three runs on seven hits in 5 2/3 innings to lead the Panthers past the Hawks.

Brad Steiner threw 1 1/3 scoreless innings to get the save.

Vista Murrieta (Calif.) 14, Palo Verde 3 — At Durango, Joven Afenir had two doubles and four RBIs, and Aaron Blackwell drove in three runs to lead the Broncos past the Panthers in five innings.

Andrew Dalaimo and Cody Schuster homered for Palo Verde.

Rim of the World (Calif.) 6, Las Vegas 5 — At Las Vegas High, Justin Soto pitched a three-hitter as the Fighting Scots edged the Wildcats.

Nolan Cassell hit a three-run triple as part of a five-run fifth inning that left Las Vegas ahead 5-4, but Rim of the World scored a run in the sixth and seventh innings to rally for the win.

Carson (Calif.) 4, Las Vegas 3 — At Las Vegas High, pinch runner Arnold Solis scored on a fielding error with two outs in the bottom of the sixth inning to complete the Colts’ rally from a 3-0 deficit in a win over the Wildcats.

Carson’s Kevin McMahon pitched a complete game with 13 strikeouts, scattering five hits.

Tyler Tidwell doubled and scored a run for Las Vegas, which stranded eight runners over the first five innings.

Las Vegas’ Dillon Dove tossed a four-hitter with seven strikeouts.

Marshall (Calif.) 6, Cimarron-Memorial 3 — At Cimarron, the Barristers used a pair of three-run innings to down the Spartans.

Tanner McAninch was 2-for-4 with a double and two RBIs, and Jayson Hicks added two hits for Cimarron.

Campbell Hall (Calif.) 7, Cimarron-Memorial 4 — At Cimarron, the Vikings took advantage of 10 walks to top the Spartans.

Josh Nuernberg scored two runs for Cimarron, and Niko Decolati drove in two runs for the Spartans, who yielded just three hits.

Verdugo Hills (Calif.) 8, Boulder City 5 — At Foothill, Jesse Mattera was 3-for-5 with two runs to lead the Dons past the Eagles.

Winning pitcher Gabe Guerra added two hits and two RBIs for Verdugo Hills.

Alta (Utah) 7, Durango 4 — At Durango, the Hawks rallied for four runs in the top of the eighth and held on to top the Trailblazers.

Anthony Parry was 3-for-4 with a triple and an RBI for Durango.

Chatsworth (Calif.) 7, Durango 0 — At Durango, the Chancellors held the Trailblazers to five hits on the way to the win.

Jason Fazendin went 2-for-3 for Durango.

Independence (Calif.) 7, Centennial 5 — At Centennial, Independence used a pair of doubles and a sacrifice fly to score two runs in the top of the ninth inning and top the Bulldogs.

Keith Krueger was 2-for-3, and Casey Moses went 2-for-4 for Centennial.

Cleveland (Calif.) 9, Centennial 0 — At Centennial, the Cavaliers limited the Bulldogs to seven singles en route to a shutout victory.

Krueger was 3-for-3, and Deandre White went 2-for-3 for Centennial.

San Fernando (Calif.) 14, Pahrump Valley 2 — At Sierra Vista, Kevin Martinez pitched a three-hitter with five strikeouts as the Tigers cruised past the Trojans in five innings.

Birmingham (Calif.) 7, Sunrise Mountain 5 — At Las Vegas High, the Miners scored two runs with two outs in the bottom of the seventh inning and put the potential tying run on first base, but a popout ended the game.

Kevin Santiago was 1-for-3 with a double and a run for Sunrise Mountain, and teammate Brandon Medieros scored twice.

Cyprus (Utah) 13, Eldorado 2 — At Sierra Vista, Jordan Quinn was 2-for-4 with a double, a triple, two runs and two RBIs to lead the Pirates past the Sundevils.

Banning (Calif.) 5, Moapa Valley 3 — At Centennial, the Pilots used a three-run sixth inning to top the Pirates.

Lawrence Villezcas was 2-for-4 with a double and a triple, and Dylan Mortensen hit a solo homer for Moapa Valley.

Independence (Calif.) 13, Moapa Valley 5 — At Centennial, the Falcons used a 12-run seventh inning to top the Pirates.

Campbell Hall (Calif.) 14, Pahranagat Valley 11 — At Cimarron, the Vikings scored seven runs in the top of the first inning and held off the Panthers.

Kade Wadsworth had two doubles and four RBIs for Pahranagat Valley, which got three RBIs from Jake Carter and two RBIs from Derek Hansen.