OVLL Dodgers take ‘Freeway Series’

With two ace pitchers behind the mound — Logan Pouelsen of the Angels and Braydon Salzman of the Dodgers — Saturday’s Ocean View Little League game on the Majors field was destined to be a battle. The Angels came out swinging and put two runs across in the first inning while the Dodgers remained scoreless as Pouelsen allowed no hits during his two innings on the mound.

However, the tide turned in the third when Dodger bats starting moving. Key hits by Adam Tajudin and Gage Meyer resulted in three runs scored over the next two innings.

Veteran closer Nick Pratto retired the remaining Angels batters, concluding a solid pitching performance by Braydon Salzman. Ultimately, the Dodgers prevailed after six innings with a score of 3-2.

— Cathy Jackson, Community Correspondent

In other Ocean View Little League action:

Juniors Division

Ocean View 8, Robinwood 1: Ocean View Team One led all the way. Ryan Gudmundson pitched for O.V. and struck out 12 in only five innings of play. The team played great, with no errors and no unearned runs.

— Mick Amaro, Community Correspondent

Minor A Division

Hot Rods 5, Redwings 3: It was a pitcher’s duel. Jacob Hathcock, on the mound for the Hot Rods, struck out 13 in five innings, allowing only three hits and one walk. Andrew De Carlo, pitching for the Redwings, recorded six strikeouts in four innings. The Hot Rods offensive game was started by Ben Quezada, who doubled in the first inning, then scored on wild pitches. Base hits by Hathcock, Will Fowler, Blake Beyett, Lucas Hansen, and a timely RBI by Zach Kurtz pulled the Hot Rods to a 3-1 lead by end of the fifth.

Quezada started the sixth with another double. Walks and passed balls allowed two more runs to score. The Redwings, fighting back, rallied in bottom of the sixth. Led by Landen Hill’s second double of the game, the Redwings were able to bring home two and load the bases.

Fowler, closing for the Hot Rods, shut them down with two strikeouts.

— Kimberly Hathcock, Community Correspondent

Minor B Division

Rockhounds 15, Sea Dogs 3: The Rockhounds held the Sea Dogs to only few runs. The game opened with base hits by Rowan Dupras, Nicholas Lambert, and Edward Pelc setting the pace. Great pressure was applied at first base by Garrett Webb. With maximum runs obtained in several innings, the Rockhound pitching crew dominated the game. Base running and steals were skillfully performed by Trenton Marsh, Lukas David and Jacob Fell. Behind the plate, outstanding catching was showcased by Lambert, leading the Rockhounds to their second victory.

— Patricia Pelc, Community Correspondent

Farm Division

Tarheels 0, Anteaters 0: Led by the hitting of Led by the hitting of Quinn Ortiz, A.J. Hurtado and Brendon Paduano, the Tarheels turned in their second strong performance to start the season. Nathan Halloran, Trent Cleboski, Elijah Herrera, Gavin Kells, Jackson Harris, Jack Carmody and David Drigla all delivered solid hits for the Tarheels.

— Daniel Lewis, Community Correspondent

Huntington Valley Little League

Majors Division

Bruins 22, Longhorns 4: At Huntington Valley Little League Saturday, 12-year-old Justin Mazzone hit two grand slams to lead the Bruins to victory.

Mazzone accounted for 10 runs total as the Bruins defeated the Longhorns, 22-4, in a Majors Division game at Inspiration Field. He finished three for three with a walk, a double, the two grand slams and 10 RBIs. He also scored four runs.

Soccer

Gold Coast Xtreme plays in National Cup: The Gold Coast Xtreme Black U12 boys soccer team had a very successful year, starting with 2009 fall league play advancing them into Silver Elite bracket for this year’s league play and along the way capping numerous tournament championships. With its impressive track record, an invitation was extended to the team for a chance to compete in the 2010 U.S. Cal South National Cup, Feb. 20 through March 14 at the Lancaster National Soccer Complex. All the games were held regardless of weather conditions including rain, hail and wind that tested participants and viewers alike.

Their National Cup campaign started with the boys as underdogs. They managed to surprise everyone but themselves by placing first in group play against the higher ranked gold and premier teams within their group. They then successfully played and advanced out of the round of 16 by securing a 2-1 victory over CV Manchester during a massive downpour. The two goals were scored in tandem play with Israel Rios and Garen Balikcioglu, which moved them into the Quarterfinals. On Saturday, the long road to the National Cup concluded in heartbreaking fashion as the team faced the eventual finalists Legends FC to see them lose 4-2. With two questionable penalty kicks called against them during the game, the second half of play saw some exciting shots on goal but it was not to be as the Xtreme were unable to convert and overcome the two-goal deficit.

Coach Gabriel Montoya was pleased with the team’s progress as they exceeded his goal of making it to into the round of 16 and advancing to the quarterfinals. He was impressed with the character and work ethic displayed by everyone on the team and said they were definitely worthy of being in the National Cup. The Xtreme Black players are Daniel Banta, Kevin Whalen, Kobe Anton, Adam Hepburn, Michael Salado as defenders and goalie Alan Montoya. The midfielders and forwards are Anthony Kiriaki, Christian Keys, Taigen Hegberg and Matthew Johnston, Garen Balikcioglu, Andy Duong, Tyler Rule, Alessandro De La Cruz and Israel Rios. The team manager is Dr. Gilda Banta.

— Mark Rule, Community Correspondent

Baseball

Team USA wins tourney crown: Team USA, a Fountain Valley/Huntington Beach-based youth baseball team, won its division last weekend at the Triple Crown Spring Championship.

Team USA went undefeated in seven games against teams from California, Arizona, Utah and Illinois. Team USA capped the tournament with a 10-6 victory over the top-ranked youth team in Arizona in a rainy championship game.

Games were played in both Tempe and Gilbert, Ariz.

Every Team USA player played an important role in every game. Offensively, Grant Prussel, Blake Hunt and Michael Thomas came up big with RBIs and had high on-base percentage.

Thomas was awarded the Offensive MVP for his consistency in hitting, scoring and base stealing.

Overall, the boys came together as a team and really played outstanding baseball. They outscored their seven opponents, 84-22.