DAILY NEWS BASEBALL TOP 10
(Records through Sunday, April 14)
1. Harvard-Westlake (18-4-1 overall, 10-1-1 in Mission League)
The Wolverines won three out of four games at the National High School Invitational, which brought 16 of the nation’s best high school baseball teams to the USA Baseball National Training Complex in Cary, North Carolina. Harvard-Westlake beat Key West 10-2, Castee 3-2 and Wesleyan Christian 12-9 but lost to Orange Lutheran 3-2.
They resume Mission League play this week with a three-game series against Loyola.
Best Tournament in the 🇺🇸
Thank you #NHSI for an amazing week of Baseball
@USABaseball @USABEvents pic.twitter.com/2lQolmeR18— Harvard-Westlake (@hwbaseball) April 13, 2024
2. Chaminade (16-7, 8-4 Mission League)
Chaminade lost to Valencia last week before coming back to shut out St. Bonaventure 8-0 on Wednesday and beat Birmingham on Thursday.
Vinny Van der Wel hit a walk-off, three-run home run in the senior day win over Birmingham and also picked up the win on the mound. He was a perfect 4 for 4 at the plate.
Chaminade – 9
Birmingham – 7
Van der Wel = 4-4 Walk off 3R HR to give himself W on the mound
Bennett, Churchill, Mowry = 3 Hits each
Fee = 2.2 IP 0R 3Ks
Amazing finish to Senior Day…@latsondheimer @Tarek_Fattal @Chaminadesports pic.twitter.com/5bTT2h56rj— ChaminadeBaseball (@NadeBsbl) April 13, 2024
3. Calabasas (16-6, 7-2 Marmonte League)
The Coyotes played four games in one week and won all of them. They beat Thousand Oaks three times and Santa Monica once as they prepare for an important Marmonte League series this week against Oaks Christian, which is second in the league standings.
Simon Hoffman was 3 for 4 at the plate in a 14-2 win over Thousand Oaks. He hit a grand slam and a double for seven RBIs in the game.
Competitive series sweep against Thousand Oaks that included a Grand Slam HR. My stats: Hit 7-10, 2BB, 2SB, 7RBI’s, 5 runs. @CalabasasBB @hardy03bsbl @latsondheimer @EliavAppelbaum pic.twitter.com/yDiWri6bMp
— Simon Hoffman (@SyhoffyBaseball) April 13, 2024
4. Westlake (18-3, 7-2 Marmonte League)
It was a three-win week for the Warriors, who beat Agoura by scores of 7-5, 14-2 and 8-0. They remain in a tie with Calabasas for first place in league.
Nolan Johnson played in his 100th career game with Westlake in Friday’s win. He had two hits, including a double, and three RBIs in the game and now ranks third in program history in RBIs with 82. He surpassed Mike Lieberthal, a Westlake product who went on to play 14 seasons in the MLB.
5. West Ranch (17-5-1, 7-1 Foothill League)
The Wildcats remain in first place in the Foothill League with two league opponents remaining in second-place Hart and Golden Valley.
Landon Hu was 2 for 3 with two runs, two RBIs and a triple in a 5-2 win over Bishop Amat on Saturday, and Brett Ishikawa was 2 for 3 with two stolen bases. Jackson Banuelos pitched six innings in a 1-0 win over Simi Valley last week, striking out seven hitters and allowing no runs.
6. Sierra Canyon (15-6-2, 6-4-2 Mission League)
Sierra Canyon beat Crespi twice before shutting out Chatsworth in a Saturday afternoon matchup. The Trailblazers will play Notre Dame this week in a three-game series that could be a factor in determining the Mission League’s third-place team.
Julian Areliz was 2 for 3 with a home run, four RBIs and two runs in a 12-0 win over Chatsworth. Dezi Delgado was 2 for 3 with two doubles, two RBIs and two runs.
7. Notre Dame (14-7-1, 6-5-1 Mission League)
St. Francis beat Notre Dame 1-0 last week, but the Knights redeemed themselves with a 6-4 win in Wednesday’s rematch.
Brett Binkley was 1 for 3 with two RBIs and one run in the win over the Golden Knights and Alex Richardson was 2 for 4 with two runs, an RBI and a double. Erik Puodziunas recorded 11 strikeouts and gave up four hits in six innings.
8. Hart (17-5, 6-2 Foothill League)
Hart will have the chance to test itself this week and possibly take control of the Foothill League with two games against West Ranch. Hart is coming off of back-to-back wins over Castaic.
9. Burroughs (17-3, 9-1 Pacific League)
The Bears are tied for second place in the Pacific League standings and have two games this week against Arcadia, which is in first place.
Burroughs beat Pacific League opponent Pasadena 7-3 last week and shut them out 2-0 on Friday.
10. Birmingham (12-7-1, 7-0 West Valley League)
The Patriots picked up two wins over El Camino Real to remain unbeaten in league play with eight games left.
Michael Figueroa pitched a complete game in a 1-0 win over the Royals and gave up four hits as he struck out six. Trevor Sostman hit a home run and scored two runs in a 12-7 win over El Camino Real on Friday.
Way to break open a tie ballgame @TrevorSostman_! @BHAMBASEBALL14 with another @WVLeague_ win, 12-7 over El Camino pic.twitter.com/9lxtsUfwLF
— Robert Sostman (@Sostman13) April 12, 2024
Next five to watch: Granada Hills Charter (13-7, 6-1 West Valley League); Moorpark (12-10-1, 5-4-1 Coastal Canyon League); Oaks Christian (11-10, 6-3 Marmonte League); Saugus (11-12, 7-3 Foothill League); Trinity Classical Academy (15-0, 8-0 Heritage League).