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Warning: A non-numeric value encountered in /home/customer/www/thevistapress.com/public_html/wp-content/themes/dailypress/include/breadcrumbs.php on line 54 Calendar > Vista High Baseball Rallies Until The End
Shawn Hobson SAN DIEGO – A great season came to an end for the Vista High baseball team at
University of San Diego’s Fowler Park on Friday night.
The Vista High baseball team won the Lions Tournament Premier Division.
Vista advanced all the way to the CIF San Diego Section I championship game and faced top-seeded Granite Hills in the final contest of the season. The No. 2-seeded Panthers rallied until the last out, but the championship trophy just ended up a hit short of their grasp. The Eagles won 4-2.
“It’s tough to go out like this, but it was still fun,” Vista senior catcher Korey Lee said, his eyes tearing up. “It was my last high school game so I’m just taking it all in.”
Photos by Shawn Hobson
It wasn’t Lee’s last game ever. He will be attending Cal Berkeley where he’s expecting to play next year. It was also the last game for senior Michael Rishebarger, who will be attending the University of Redlands next year. Rishebarger started on the mound for Vista in front of the large crowd.
Michael Rishebarger
“I wasn’t nervous,” Rishebarger said. “I may have had a little butterflies during the first inning, but once that was done, I was fine.”
The senior right-hander retired the first three batters he faced in the bottom half of the first, but his left-handed counterpart shined as well. Granite Hills starting pitcher Dillan Shrum retired the first six batters, but he threw a lead-off walk to Andre Schweizer in the top of third. The sophomore scored after Matt Ornelia hit a liner into the left-field corner for a double. It turned out to be the only hit for Vista against two Granite Hills hurlers.
Shrum threw five innings with five strikeouts and three walks. Ivan Luna, who walked, scored the Panthers’ second run on a passed ball during the fourth inning. Andrew Brown relieved Shrum in the sixth. He did not give up a hit, but yet the Panthers had a chance for a comeback in the top of the seventh.
Brown walked Vista junior Manny Ramirez to begin the inning. Ramirez advanced to third after an error, which allowed Nate Tholl to reach first. Alex Medina then batted with one out and runners at the corners.
Medina hit a fly ball to right. The right–fielder Trevor Hazelhurst caught the ball and threw a bullet to catcher Jake Fenn, who tagged a sliding Ramirez for the final out.
“I’m never going to second guess my guy,” Vista head coach Ricky Imperiali said about the tag up. “It had a to be perfect throw, and it was. It does hurt when you have one of your best hitters on deck, especially one that can hit the ball out of the ballpark.”
On deck was Ornelia, who has been clutch for the Panthers all season. He will be attending the University of Utah next year.
“I wanted to bat, but I still think it was the right choice,” Ornelia said about the last play of the game. “It just didn’t work out that way.”
“If you would have told us that we were only going to get one hit today, I would say ‘You’re kidding,’” Imperiali said. “When you have more runs than hits, it’s not really a good recipe for success.”
Imperiali and the rest of the Vista coaches shared their admiration for the players, who accomplished so much this season. Vista ended the season with a record of 27-7, and it won the Lions Tournament earlier in the year.
“It was a great atmosphere. The boys played hard,” Imperiali said. “That’s all you can ask for. We just didn’t play our game.”
Vista High……001.100.0..–..2..1..0
Granite Hills…013.000.x –..4..7..1
Rishebarger, Andrew Geisler (4) and Lee. Shrum, Brown (6) and Jake Fenn. W – Shrum. L – Rishebarger. 2B – Matt Ornelia (V), Darian Cossio (GH). Records: Vista 27-7. Granite Hills 23-12.
Contact Shawn Hobson at sportswriter@sbcglobal.net. He can be followed on Twitter @HOBMediaWorks.
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