CIF-SS BASEBALL QUARTERFINALS
FRIDAY
DIVISION 1
Orange Lutheran (24-6) VS. La Mirada (23-6)
Where, when: Glenn High, 4:15 p.m.
Outlook: Trinity League champion Orange Lutheran, No. 1 in the Orange County Top 25, beat Sierra Canyon 6-0 in the first round and Vista Murrieta 17-6 in the second round. Loyola Marymount signee Nate Savoie hit two home runs and Josiah Hartshorn homered and drove in four runs in the win over Vista Murrieta. Hartshorn has a team-high 22 RBIs. La Mirada, champion of the Gateway League, beat Oaks Christian 4-3 in the first round and Foothill 5-2 in the second round. Bear Calvo homered for the Matadores in the win over Foothill. Kevin Jeon is batting .405 with 21 RBIs for La Mirada.
Huntington Beach’s Tanner Edson, right, congratulates Nate Cox, left, after Cox scored against Villa Park in the second round of the CIF-SS Division 1 baseball playoff in Orange on Tuesday, May 7, 2024. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
Santa Margarita (21-8-1) vs. Huntington Beach (22-8)
Where, when: Huntington Beach High, 3:15 p.m.
Outlook: This could have an outstanding matchup of senior pitchers, Santa Margarita’s Cade Townsend and Huntington Beach’s Nathan Aceves. Townsend threw a three-hitter with 11 strikeouts in the Eagles’ 7-0 win over Tesoro in the first round. Townsend, who signed with Mississippi, is projected to be an early-round draft choice. Aceves, who signed with UC Santa Barbara, has a 1.21 ERA. Santa Margarita is No. 2 and Huntington Beach is No. 3 in the Orange County Top 25. Santa Margarita beat Gahr 6-3 in the second round. Huntington Beach beat Santiago of Corona 11-2 in the first round and Villa Park 5-3 in the second round. Santa Margarita finished second to Orange Lutheran in the Trinity League. Huntington Beach won the Surf League championship.
DIVISION 2
Canyon (16-13-1) vs. Ayala (14-9-1)
Where, when: Ayala High, 3:15 p.m.
Outlook: Canyon was last year’s CIF-SS Division 4 champion. In these playoffs, North Hills League champion Canyon defeated Temecula Valley 5-1 in the first round and Quartz Hill 5-4 in the second round. Cohen Gomez, last year’s CIF-SS Division 4 player of the year, is batting .387. As a pitcher Gomez has 61 strikeouts in 44⅔ innings. Ayala finished third in the Palomares League. In the playoffs Ayala beat La Serna 6-1 in the first round and Maranatha 11-0 in the second round.
Crean Lutheran (17-12) vs. Moorpark (17-10-1)
Where, when: Moorpark High, 3:15 p.m.
Outlook: Crean Lutheran finished fourth in the six-team Empire League. In the playoffs the Saints, who lost to Canyon in last season’s CIF-SS Division 4 final, beat second-seeded Paloma Valley 9-8 in the first round and Citrus Valley 3-2 in nine innings in the second round. Walker Richardson walked with the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth inning to bring home the winning run against Citrus Valley. Moorpark beat Crescenta Valley 7-1 in the first round and Valencia of Valencia 4-3 in the second round.
Mission Viejo (17-13) vs. Los Alamitos (23-7)
Where, when: Los Alamitos High, 3:15 p.m.
Outlook: Mission Viejo finished fourth in the five-team South Coast League. The Diablos in the playoffs beat Santa Barbara 3-0 in the first round and third-seeded Chaminade 10-6 in the second round. Keenan Anzai is batting .405 with a team-leading 32 hits. Los Alamitos finished second to Huntington Beach in the Surf League. In the playoffs the Griffins beat Walnut 5-0 in the first round and La Salle 7-2 in the second round.
Beckman (22-6-1) vs. Newbury Park (17-12)
Where, when: Newbury Park High, 3:15 p.m.
Outlook: Beckman finished second to Northwood in the Pacific Coast League. In the playoffs the Patriots beat Temescal Canyon 1-0 in the first round and La Habra 6-5 in 10 innings in the second round. Beckman trailed by two runs in the top of the seventh inning when Isaiah Kapur’s double drove in Alex Dorantes and Ken Tomitaka. Newbury Park finished fourth in the six-team Marmonte League. In the playoffs the Panthers defeated Flintridge Prep 12-2 in the first round and second-seeded Summit 8-0 in the second round.
DIVISION 5
Chino (13-9-1) vs. Calvary Chapel (16-10)
Where, when: Great Park, Irvine, 3:15 p.m.
Outlook: Chino finished second in the Mt. Baldy League. Chino in the playoffs beat Ramona 5-0 in the first round and Lakeside 8-7 in the second round. Calvary Chapel finished third in the seven-team Orange Coast League. The Eagles beat third-seeded Saugus 6-2 in the first round and Monrovia 4-2 in the second round. Jacob Flores pitched four innings and was 2 for 3 and Matt Busch was 3 for 4 in the win over Monrovia.
DIVISION 7
Buena Park (23-6) vs. Rancho Christian (13-11)
Where, when: Rancho Christian High, 3:15 p.m.
Outlook: No. 1-seeded Buena Park finished second to Fullerton in the Freeway League. The Coyotes have scored 25 runs in their two playoff games, a 12-0 win over Thacher in the first round and a 13-4 win over Hueneme in the second round. Alex Blancas and Ryan Prescott each had two hits and two RBIs in the win over Hueneme. Rancho Christian finished second in the Inland Valley League. In the playoffs the Eagles beat Vasquez 11-1 in the first round and Banning 7-5 in the second round.
Desert Christian of Lancaster (17-7) vs. Santa Ana (14-12-1)
Where, when: Santa Ana High, 3:15 p.m.
Outlook: Desert Christian finished third in the Heritage League. The Knights beat Sierra Vista 8-4 in the first round and Leuzinger 17-0 in the second round. Santa Ana finished third in the Orange Coast League. In the playoffs the Saints beat Santa Fe League champion Cantwell Sacred Heart 6-1 in the first round and Majestic League champion and third-seeded Cornerstone Christian 3-1 in the second round. Santa Ana freshman Nehemiah Jatib has a team-high 26 hits.
Oxford Academy (15-14-1) vs. Jurupa Valley (18-6-1)
Where, when: Jurupa Valley High, 3:15 p.m.
Outlook: Second-seeded Oxford Academy beat Western Christian 7-1 in the first round and Silverado 1-0 in the second round. The Patriots finished second in the 605 League. Jurupa Valley is the Mountain Valley League champion. The Jaguars in the playoffs defeated Carter 5-1 in the first round and Chaffey 15-2 in the second round.
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