Baseball: Luke Laurita comes through for El Camino Real
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The No. 1-seeded team is supposed to have an easy time in the opening round of the City Section Division I playoffs. But Woodland Hills El Camino Real survived only because junior left-hander Luke Laurita came through on the mound in a 1-0 victory over Marshall.
Laurita struck out three, walked one and allowed two hits. Nick Snyder had two hits for the Conquistadores. George Alamillo was the tough-luck loser, giving up five hits and an unearned run in the fourth.
Chatsworth defeated Bell, 6-0, behind Kiefer Kofman, who threw a complete game. Kofman and Chris DeVito had two hits apiece. Birmingham defeated Palisades, 6-0. Steven Rodriguez threw the shutout and Edgar Ruvalcaba had two hits and two RBIs, including a home run.
San Pedro won its 18th consecutive game by pulling out a 5-4 win over Garfield in eight innings.
Taft defeated Narbonne, 8-7. Ramsey Abushahla had three hits, including a home run. Adam Cox also hit a home run. Omar Avila hit two home runs for Narbonne.
San Fernando defeated Granada Hills, 3-0. Kevin Martinez threw a six-hitter. He struck out one and walked two. San Fernando will host Birmingham on Thursday.
Kennedy rallied for a 5-4 win over Cleveland in eight innings, the winning run scoring on an error. Kennedy scored three runs in the bottom of the seventh to tie the game, 4-4. Freshman Anthony Rios delivered a two-run pinch-hit single in the seventh to tie the game. Kennedy is expected to play San Pedro on Friday because of graduation ceremonies.
Verdugo Hills defeated Roosevelt, 12-3, scoring nine runs in the sixth inning. Kenny Moss hit a grand slam.
The quarterfinal matchups: Verdugo Hills at El Camino Real, Kennedy at San Pedro, Birmingham at San Fernando, Taft at Chatsworth.
In Division II, Michael Sepulveda hit a three-run home run in North Hollywood’s 10-3 win over Hollywood. Fremont defeated Lincoln, 2-0. Maywood defeated Locke, 2-1. -- Eric Sondheimer