2011 PCBL AAA Division Summer Championship
Sunday, August 21st @ 3:30pm / USC Dedeaux Field
Ventura Athletics -vs- Marlins
Marlins Edge A's to Claim Summer Title
By Scot Sweet / PCBL Staff Writer
This was the afternoon game of our PCBL Summer Championship triple-header at beautiful Dedeaux Field at USC. Both teams here fought hard all year to get in this championship; and both are hoping to earn their 1st PCBL title on this day. The stage was set for some highly competitive baseball; so without further delay, let’s get right to the action!
The Marlins come to bat in the bottom of the 2nd inning with the game still scoreless. With 1 out, Greg Simonetti doubles. He’s followed by Larry Ochoa who singles to score Simonetti. The Marlins settle for the lone run in the inning to take a 1-0 lead in this contest.
The A’s fail to score in the top half of the 3rd inning; sending the Marlins to bat in the bottom of the inning to try and extend upon their 1 run lead. They lead off with Brian O’Neill who triples. He’s followed by Kevin Grizard who draws a walk. The next batter is Rob Kuntz. He flies out to left for the sacrifice; scoring O’neill from 3rd. The Marlins settle for the single run in the inning to take a 2-0 lead through 3 complete innings of play.
The Athletics come up in the top of the 4th; still looking to get on the board. With one out in the inning, Brent Collier singles and then reaches 2nd due to a fielding error. Two batters later, Collier scores by fielder’s choice on a Steven Acevedo grounder. The A’s get the run and get on the board; now trailing 2-1.
The Marlins come to bat in the bottom of the 6th inning; still leading 2-1. Austin Alvizo starts things off with a lead off double. Two batters later, he scores on a single by Larry Ochoa; his second RBI single of the game. Again, the Marlins settle for 1 run in the inning and they extend their lead; now up 3-1.
The A’s fail to score in the top half of the 7th; thus putting the Marlins one inning closer to victory. The Marlins lead off the bottom of the 7th with Kevin Grizard who singles. He’s followed by Rob Kuntz who also singles. Both advance 90 feet on a pass ball shortly thereafter. Austin Alvizo walks; loading the bases for Greg Simonetti who reaches by error with a run scoring on the play. Larry Ochoa grounds into a fielder’s choice with another run scoring as a result. Starting pitcher Keenan Cardin singles to score a run. The Marlins end up with 3 runs in the inning to take a 6-1 lead through 7 complete innings of play.
The Athletics are running out of time as they enter the top half of the 8th inning. They lead off with Jason Breckley who walks; but is thrown out stealing moments later. Ryan Kolbe follows with a single. Brent Collier reaches base safely due to an error on the 1st baseman. Two errors in the inning result in both runs scoring. They settle for 2 runs in the inning to trail the Marlins by 3; down 6-3.
However, both teams would go quietly from this point forward; and the Marlins would hold on to win their 1st PCBL AAA-Division Title. Congratulations to both teams for earning the right to be in this championship and for putting on such a defensive contest. And most of all, congratulations to the 2011 AAA-Division Summer Champion Marlins!
Game MVP:
Keenan Cardin (Marlins)
On defense: 5 Innings pitched; Allowed 1 run on 6 hits, with 1 walk & 1 K
On offense: 2 for 2; with 2 singles and an RBI
GAME STATS
Athletics 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 2 0 3 8 3
Marlins 0 1 1 0 0 1 3 0 - 6 14 8
Marlins Offensive Stars:
Keegan Cardin 2 for 2; 2 singles, RBI
Larry Ochoa 2 for 3; 2 singles, 3 RBI’s
Brian O’Neill 2 for 4; single, triple, walk, 1 run
Greg Simonetti 2 for 3; single, double, RBI, 2 runs
Kevin Grizard 2 for 3; 2 singles, 2 walks, 1 run
Pitching Stats:
(WP) K. Cardin (Marlins) 5 IP; Allowed 1 run on 6 hits; 1 BB & 1 K
(Save) D. Fog (Marlins) 4 IP; Allowed 2 runs on 2 hits; 2 BB & 2 K’s
(LP) R. Abeloe (Athletics) 6.1 IP; Allowed 6 runs on 11 hits; 4 BB & 2 K’s
Game Time: 3:30pm - 6:05pm (2 hours 35 minutes)
Umpires: Brian Marine
Andrew Marquez
Nic Pontecorvo
Dax Villalta
