2008 Woodie Awards
Valley Baseball Sweeps College of the Canyons
Baeza dominates the game as the Monarchs defeated the Cougars (7-3).
Sam Hahn
Issue date: 4/6/05 Section: Sports
- Page 1 of 1
SANTA CLARITA-Riding the arm of sophomore pitcher Eddie Baeza, the Valley College Monarchs Baseball team defeated the College of the Canyons Cougars 7-3.
Completing a two-game sweep of the Cougars Saturday, the Monarchs
topped Thursday's 8-4 win as Valley improved to record to 13-12 overall,
while flexing a 7-5 conference record.
"This game was big for us," said Head Coach Dave Mallas. "To sweep a team like Canyons [who has won the conference title the past three seasons] is huge for us."
Valley's victory over Canyons was an incredible stepping stone for
the Monarchs, who have amassed a 0-12 record against the Cougars in three seasons.
Saturday's game looked to be an easy victory for Canyons as the Cougars jumped on Baeza after sophomore pitcher Adam Geery shut down the Monarchs in the top of the first as he faced seven batters in the first inning.
After settling down in the second inning, Baeza took the game into his own hands in the third inning as the sophomore pitcher belted a grand slam while left fielder DJ Lewis drew a crucial one-out walk after being
down 0-2 in the count.
Freshman right-fielder Josh Cliffords, hit by a pitch, reached base safely, as did shortstop Daniel Gomez and second baseman Robert Ninfo.
"It feels good knowing that you can win a game even after getting off to a slow start," said Baeza. "My mindset after the first inning was just to tear them apart with my arm and my bat."
Valley added to its lead as Geery walked Lewis and Baeza in the fifth inning before catcher Raul Perez's sacrifice fly scored Baeza.
The Monarchs added another run in the fifth inning as a throwing error by Cougar second baseman Matt Reimers scored Lewis from third.
Canyons added a run in the bottom of the fifth inning as shortstop Brian Chavez scored off a wild pitch from Baeza.
Chavez doubled to open the inning and moved over to third on a Nick Petrucci single.
Baeza continued to dominate the game as he limited the Cougars to just four hits and one run.
"We've struggled the last couple of games," said Baeza. "To come in and beat [Canyons] is great."
As the Monarchs prepare for a bye week, Mallas added that improvements need to be made and he wants the team to be competitive and focused on winning.
"We need to be more competitive offensively," explained Mallas. "We struck out 16 times today. Defensively, we need to work on cutting back on our errors, but we're doing okay as a team."
Completing a two-game sweep of the Cougars Saturday, the Monarchs
topped Thursday's 8-4 win as Valley improved to record to 13-12 overall,
while flexing a 7-5 conference record.
"This game was big for us," said Head Coach Dave Mallas. "To sweep a team like Canyons [who has won the conference title the past three seasons] is huge for us."
Valley's victory over Canyons was an incredible stepping stone for
the Monarchs, who have amassed a 0-12 record against the Cougars in three seasons.
Saturday's game looked to be an easy victory for Canyons as the Cougars jumped on Baeza after sophomore pitcher Adam Geery shut down the Monarchs in the top of the first as he faced seven batters in the first inning.
After settling down in the second inning, Baeza took the game into his own hands in the third inning as the sophomore pitcher belted a grand slam while left fielder DJ Lewis drew a crucial one-out walk after being
down 0-2 in the count.
Freshman right-fielder Josh Cliffords, hit by a pitch, reached base safely, as did shortstop Daniel Gomez and second baseman Robert Ninfo.
"It feels good knowing that you can win a game even after getting off to a slow start," said Baeza. "My mindset after the first inning was just to tear them apart with my arm and my bat."
Valley added to its lead as Geery walked Lewis and Baeza in the fifth inning before catcher Raul Perez's sacrifice fly scored Baeza.
The Monarchs added another run in the fifth inning as a throwing error by Cougar second baseman Matt Reimers scored Lewis from third.
Canyons added a run in the bottom of the fifth inning as shortstop Brian Chavez scored off a wild pitch from Baeza.
Chavez doubled to open the inning and moved over to third on a Nick Petrucci single.
Baeza continued to dominate the game as he limited the Cougars to just four hits and one run.
"We've struggled the last couple of games," said Baeza. "To come in and beat [Canyons] is great."
As the Monarchs prepare for a bye week, Mallas added that improvements need to be made and he wants the team to be competitive and focused on winning.
"We need to be more competitive offensively," explained Mallas. "We struck out 16 times today. Defensively, we need to work on cutting back on our errors, but we're doing okay as a team."
