Baseball: It’s an Esperanza-North final

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Anaheim Esperanza got two shutout innings of relief from Austin Pettibone and came away with a 6-2 victory over Long Beach Wilson in a Division 1 semifinal at Blair Field.

It means the Aztecs (23-10) will take on Riverside North (26-7) on Friday at 7:30 p.m. at Dodger Stadium in the Division 1 final.

Ryan Cooper had a triple and single for the Aztecs. Brandon Morones had an RBI double.

‘We’ve hit our stride,’ Esperanza Coach Mike Curran said.

It should be pointed out that the two teams that advanced to this year’s National Classic, Bishop Amat and Esperanza, will be both playing for championships on Friday at Dodger Stadium. Bishop Amat is in the Division 4 final at 4:30 p.m. against Palm Desert.

And with Pettibone, a UC Santa Barbara signee, entering peak form, the Aztecs certainly get the favorite’s role in the Division 1 final.

-- Eric Sondheimer