Baseball: Sailors improve, but still fall

Tony Altobelli

NEWPORT BEACH - One bad inning proved to be enough to bring down

the Newport Harbor High baseball team in Friday’s 5-0 Sea View League

loss to visiting Woodbridge.

A four-run seventh inning for the Warriors (5-6, 2-4 in league)

spoiled six innings of above-average baseball by the Sailors (4-6, 1-5).

Starting pitcher Joel Brown (1-3) pitched six strong innings, allowing

only one run on six hits with no walks and one strikeout before

Woodbridge’s Brian Martinez and Mike Peck tagged him with back-to-back

doubles to open the seventh.

“Joel threw the ball very well out there today,” Newport Coach Jim

Kiefer said. “He threw strikes and allowed the defense behind him to get

into a rhythm.”

Apparently, it was a rhythm the Sailors could dance to. After

committing 18 errors the past four games, Newport made every play look

rather easy until the fateful seventh, when a dropped fly ball helped

open the flood gates.

The miscue was sandwiched between four Warrior hits, including a

two-run double by Mark Heyer.

Warriors’ pitcher Brian Beck helped his own cause with an RBI double

to center.

Beck was a bigger problem for Newport on the mound. The UCLA-bound

right-hander allowed only four hits over seven innings. He struck out

seven, while walking two.

“We took a lot of fastballs from Beck today and that baffles me,”

Kiefer said. “We let him set the tempo of the game and a pitcher like

Beck will make you pay for that.”

Both pitchers put zeros on the scoreboard until the top of the fifth

inning, when Martinez clubbed a solo home run to right-center.

Newport’s best chance to score came in the sixth when Alan Lane led

off the frame with a sharp single up the middle.

Lane advanced to second on a successful sacrifice by Cody Forsythe,

but Beck managed to retire the next two batters on harmless fly balls.

Careless baserunning proved costly for the Sailors. Two runners were

tagged out at third base ending both the fifth and seventh innings,

prompting Kiefer to march the troops to the right field corner for a

colorful postgame chat.

Martinez ended the game 2 for 3 with two runs scored and one RBI,

while Joel Clark went 3 for 4.

Lane, Cameron Pemstein, Lou Castillo and Mike Jones had Newport’s four

hits.

Kiefer was quick to praise the defensive performance of Jones at

shortstop. “He made a couple of very nice plays out there,” he said.

“That was very nice to see.”

Newport will play at Aliso Viejo Wednesday, beginning at 3:15 p.m.

SEA VIEW LEAGUE

Woodbridge 5, Newport Harbor 0

Woodbridge 000 010 4 - 5 11 1

Newport 000 000 0 - 0 4 2

Beck and Martinez; Brown, Forsythe (7) and Brant. W - Beck, 2-2. L -

Brown, 1-3. 2B - Martinez (W), Peck (W), Heyer (W), Beck (W). HR -

Martinez (W).