Southern Section 5-A Baseball Playoffs : Esperanza Puts Beverly Hills Down, Out

The exact point that Esperanza High School seized control of its Southern Section 5-A semifinal playoff game against Beverly Hills on Tuesday was debatable.

But there was no doubt as to which inning Esperanza broke the game open. The Aztecs trailed, 3-2, going into the bottom of the fifth inning, but 2 walks, 2 errors, 2 hit batsmen, 4 singles, 8 runs and 14 batters later, they had an insurmountable lead.

Esperanza added two runs in the sixth inning to beat Beverly Hills, 12-3, and advance to the 5-A championship game at 7:30 Saturday night in Anaheim Stadium.

It’s the third consecutive title appearance for the Aztecs (21-8), who will play Diamond Bar, a 3-1 winner over Riverside Poly in the other semifinal game.

Esperanza is the first team since Lakewood (1975-77) to reach the large-schools’ championship game three seasons in a row.

Beverly Hills finishes its season 19-9.

“I knew we had it all the way,” Jim Short, Aztec first baseman, said. “It’s something you feel. I knew we were going to come back.”

Despite Short’s assurances, the outcome was very much in doubt until Esperanza’s big inning.

Esperanza scored twice in the first as Beverly Hills starter Ryan Karp had early control problems. After Deric Williams and Doug Saunders walked, Short knocked Williams in with a single down the left-field line. Jason Moler followed with a single to right, scoring Saunders for a 2-0 lead.

But Beverly Hills rallied to go ahead, 3-2, in the fourth inning thanks to Mike Moore, its speedy right fielder. With two outs, Moore beat out an infield chopper. Steve Fenton, the next batter, knocked a perfectly placed bunt along the third-base line. None of the Aztecs could get to the ball in time and Fenton was safe at first.

Chad Cohen, the center fielder, then hit the first pitch from Esperanza starter Roger Weems over the fence in left-center field for a three-run homer.

Weems was lifted for Rob Nay at that point and Nay shut out the Normans until the seventh, when Saunders came in.

“Roger didn’t have it,” Esperanza Coach Mike Curran said. “He was going to come out that inning. Rob Nay is our long (relief) guy. He sets the table for Saunders.”

After an uneventful fourth, Esperanza broke through in the fifth.

Todd Gudat, Aztec second baseman, reached on an error to start the inning. After Williams popped up, it all came unraveled for Beverly Hills.

A single by Saunders scored Gudat. Saunders then stole second and scored on a single by Short for a 4-3 lead.

After that it all was a blur:

A walk, a new pitcher, a wild pitch, a hit batter, a single and a stolen base, an infield single, another batter hit, another walk . . .

Which brought Saunders up for the second time in the inning. This time, the bases were loaded and Esperanza led, 8-3. Beverly Hills sent in Jeff Roach, the Normans’ third pitcher in the inning, to face Saunders. Saunders promptly hit a ground-rule double that bounced over the left-field fence, scoring two more runs and giving the Aztecs a 10-3 lead.

“I didn’t think three runs would beat Esperanza,” Bill Erickson, Beverly Hills coach, said. “They’re too good to score only three runs and win. (But) our pitchers didn’t come to pitch today.”

Esperanza had 12 hits. Short had three, and Saunders, Jason Moler and Greg Hauser had two apiece.