BLAZER BASH: Foothill rides early momentum to baseball win

Momentum shifts rarely occur after only half an inning, but the Foothill baseball team benefited from one Tuesday.

The host Falcons got an early boost when starter Zak Avery escaped a first-inning jam unscathed and coasted to a 10-2 victory over Campbell Hall (Calif.) at the Blazer Spring Bash.

Foothill (12-2) finished pool play undefeated and will meet Alta (Utah) in a semifinal at 1 p.m. today at Sierra Vista.

“It’s a good win for us,” Foothill coach Matt Iglitz said. “Our approach is we’re just trying to get better on a daily basis.”

Avery allowed a triple to Jordan Novick on the game’s first pitch but needed only nine more pitches to strand the runner. That sparked Foothill’s offense, which jumped all over Vikings starter Zach Novick in the bottom of the inning.

“Any time you leave a runner at third in that situation, it’s big for momentum,” Iglitz said. “Getting that zero was important. It got the guys ready to go.”

Bligh Madris opened with a double down the right-field line, and he scored on Tyler Van Stone’s one-out single, the first of four straight hits by the Falcons.

Janson Neff and Royce Salay added run-scoring singles, and pinch runner Joel Angulo stole home for a 4-0 lead when Spencer Throgmorton got caught in a rundown between first and second.

“It was huge because we got the momentum right away, and we were able to put them away early,” Van Stone said. “We took the lead and never let them back in the game.”

Madris finished 3-for-4 with two doubles and two RBIs, and Van Stone went 2-for-3 with a two-run triple in the sixth inning for the Falcons.

Avery went six innings and scattered three hits while striking out three. His only trouble came in the third inning when he issued all four of his walks and threw 36 of his 90 pitches.

Ethan Baer’s infield single with the bases loaded in the third cut Foothill’s lead to 5-1.

“It’s a relief knowing my team can come back right away,” Avery said. “It’s comforting having a good defense behind me as well. I always trust them.”

Foothill manufactured a run without a hit in the fourth inning, as Ryan Moyes scored on a wild pitch. The Falcons then tacked on four runs in the sixth.

“Any time you put 10 runs up on the board, it’s a good performance,” Iglitz said. “I liked our approach today.”

Basic 12, Marshall (Calif.) 1 — At Durango, Josh McLean threw a four-hitter and went 2-for-2 with three RBIs to lead the Wolves to the five-inning win over the Barristers.

Skyler Mahoney went 3-for-4 with a double, three runs and an RBI, and Ryne Nelson was 2-for-3 with a double and two RBIs for Basic. Mikey York added two hits and two runs for the Wolves.

Chatsworth (Calif.) 5, Basic 0 — At Durango, the Chancellors scored two in the top of the first on the way to the win over the Wolves.

Cimarron-Memorial 10, Verdugo Hills (Calif.) 3 — At Cimarron, Josh Nuernberg was 3-for-4 with a run and an RBI to help the Spartans past the Dons.

Nick Borowski went 2-for-5 with a double and two RBIs, and Micquel Robinson was 2-for-2 with a double, a run and an RBI.

Niko Decolati, Logan Bottrell and Tanner McAninch each added two hits for Cimarron.

Shadow Ridge 9, Marshall (Calif.) 0 — At Durango, Travis Caskie fired a two-hitter, striking out eight and walking one, to lead the Mustangs over the Barristers.

Ben Fitzhugh and Tyler Burton each drove in two runs for Shadow Ridge.

Faith Lutheran 15, Mazama (Ore.) 1 — At Sierra Vista, Andrew Hudgins was 3-for-4 with three doubles and four RBIs to lead the Crusaders to the five-inning win over the Vikings.

Brandon Johnson threw a one-hitter, striking out 11 with no walks, to get the win.

Eric Uelman and Alec Goss each added two doubles for the Crusaders, who scored 12 runs in the first.

Faith Lutheran 16, Birmingham (Calif.) 3 — At Sierra Vista, Dakota Greenwalt was 3-for-4 with a double, a home run and four RBIs to help the Crusaders to the five-inning win over the Patriots.

Tyler Trageton was 2-for-4 with a double, a homer and four RBIs, and Hudgins doubled twice for Faith Lutheran.

Desert Oasis 15, Valley 4 — At Desert Oasis, Bryson Stott was 1-for-2 with a double and three RBIs to help the Diamondbacks to the five-inning win over the Vikings.

Jordyn Compehos went 2-for-3 with an RBI, and Cody Schmidt was 2-for-3 with a double for Desert Oasis, which scored five runs in the first and four in the fourth.

Sierra Vista 4, Mazama (Ore.) 1 — At Sierra Vista, Nolan Kingham was 2-for-3 with a double, a triple and three RBIs to lead the Mountain Lions past the Vikings.

Dustin Randall threw five strong innings, allowing one run on three hits, to get the victory.

Dylon White was 2-for-3 for Sierra Vista.

Arbor View 9, Banning (Calif.) 6 — At Centennial, Nate Stepna had a two-run single as part of a five-run fourth inning, and the Aggies topped the Pilots.

Evan McMahan was 2-for-4 with three RBIs for Arbor View.

Arbor View 12, Alta (Utah) 2 — At Cimarron, Sam Pastrone was 3-for-4 with two RBIs, and the Aggies opened the game with five straight doubles in a six-inning win over the Hawks.

P.J. Gonzalez and Adam Koutz had two doubles apiece as Arbor View had nine doubles in all.

Max Jungblut finished 2-for-2 with two runs and an RBI.

Moapa Valley 12, Grant (Calif.) 10 — At Las Vegas, Jake Repp went 2-for-5 with a double and three RBIs, and the Pirates held off the Lancers.

Kade Bryant was 2-for-4 with an RBI, and Kasen Hughes also doubled for Moapa Valley, which meets Carson (Calif.) at 8 a.m. Wednesday at Centennial.

Centennial 14, Durango JV 1 — At Centennial, Ryan Huerta was 3-for-3 with three RBIs to lead the Bulldogs over the Traiblazers junior varsity.

Ricky Koplow was 2-for-3 with three runs, and Brody Allison went 2-for-3 with two runs and an RBI for Centennial.

Centennial 8, Carson (Calif.) 4 — At Centennial, Cooper Powell hit a grand slam in the fourth inning, and the Bulldogs defeated the Colts.

Will Loucks was 2-for-2 with two doubles and also struck out eight in six innings to earn the victory.

San Fernando (Calif.) 6, Palo Verde 3 — At Durango, Roberto Ramos was 2-for-4 with a double, a homer and three RBIs to lead the Tigers over the Panthers.

Kevin DeSoto was 2-for-4 with two RBIs for Palo Verde.

Banning (Calif.) 9, Eldorado 1 — At Centennial, Justin Licea was 3-for-4 with two doubles and three RBIs to lead the Pilots over the Sundevils.

Seattle Stoneback, Lucio Arreola and Trey Bayliss each had two hits for Eldorado.

Eldorado 14, Durango JV 4 — At Centennial, Arreola was 4-for-5 with four doubles, five RBIs and three runs in the six-inning win.

Don Dimaggio was 3-for-3 with three RBIs, and Stoneback went 2-for-4 with a triple, two RBIs and three runs for Eldorado.

Birmingham (Calif.) 7, Palo Verde 2 — At Sierra Vista, the Patriots scored five runs in the first two innings en route to the win over the Panthers.

Trevor Jackson was 2-for-3 for Palo Verde.

Independence (Calif.) 6, Las Vegas 2 — At Las Vegas, Chris Ransick doubled twice and the Falcons scored all their runs in the final three innings to beat the Wildcats.

Centennial (Calif.) 21, Durango 10 — At Durango, Andrew Daugherty hit two home runs and finished with six RBIs as the Golden Hawks outslugged the Trailblazers.

Artie Gallegos went 2-for-4 with a home run and four RBIs, and Scott Martinez also homered for Durango.