Prep Baseball: Central Valley Christian, Exeter win baseball tournament championships
It was a memorable spring break for the Central Valley Christian baseball team.
The Cavaliers won the Fowler Easter Classic championship, beating Fowler 9-6, Dinuba 3-2 and edging Sanger 4-3 in nine innings to bring home the tournament hardware on March 27.
CVC overcame two one-run deficits in the eighth and ninth frames in the championship game against Sanger. CVC's Dominic Alvarado hit the walk-off single. Bryce Crook earned the win on the hill, throwing seven strikeouts with no hits in 4 2/3 innings and Landon Holloway had a strong outing, too, with four strikeouts.
Alvarado, an infielder, finished with two hits and two RBIs. Zach Simmon also knocked in a run.
CVC (12-5) also won in walk-off fashion in the 3-2 victory over Dinuba. Caden Ritchie delivered the game-winning RBI single and Simmon tossed a complete game with 12 strikeouts.
"That wasn’t easy at all," Cavaliers head coach Shane Marshall said. "I think it really revealed at the end of the day who we are. Something that we talked about early on in the year — playing a complete baseball game. We got a couple of wins that, as a coaching staff, we weren’t satisfied with, teaching and communicating that not all wins are good wins and not all losses are bad losses, right? Because at the end of the day, it's about playing seven complete innings, playing from the first inning to the seventh and that's something that early in the year we struggled to do but I have seen all that come together this week.
"To be able to compete like that with our backs against the wall, the confidence that we were going to come back, the confidence that we were going to win, the expectation from the boys that we were going to get the job done, you know, that was very special."
The Cavaliers are anchored this season by Alvarado, Crook, Holloway, pitcher Case Anker, pitcher Zach Simmon, infielder Kelan Turner and outfielder Teague Brandenburg.
Brandenburg, the Cavaliers' lead-off hitter, was named the tournament's Wheels Contest Champion as the fastest base runner.
In three games, Brandenburg registered four hits, three runs, an RBI and two stolen bases.
"Teague Brandenburg, he's been an amazing lead-off man," Marshall said. "He’s really fast, but even more than that, I think he's really bought into making the pitcher work, finding a way to get on base. He’s able to get onto base multiple ways. He's able to swing it. He can put down a bunt when he needs to. He can take a walk. For being able to have the pressure of a speedy lead-off guy get on base early, I think we, this team, probably more than any team that I've had before, it feels like we're on offense quite a bit. I think Teague really sets the tone batting in the lead-off spot."
It was a bit of a homecoming for Marshall.
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Fowler head coach Bill Feaver gave the Cavaliers' skipper his first shot at coaching in 2017.
Marshall spent two seasons with the Redcats before taking over the CVC program in 2019.
Feaver has more than 400 career victories as a head coach at Fowler.
"He's an amazing mentor," Marshall said. "To have him kind of take me under his wing, challenge me and teach me, he's just been, even today, an awesome mentor."
The majority of players on this year's roster, including starters Anker, Brandenburg, Crook and Caden Ritchie, were members of the Cavaliers football team that won a CIF State Division 2-A title with a 15-1 record.
That championship mentality has spilled over to the diamond.
"This group has been really, really blessed," Marshall said. "That blessing is a result of their hard work. They've won a lot in a lot of different sports."
Exeter captures Ron Robinson Classic championship
Exeter was on a roll during spring break.
The Monarchs (12-2) tallied wins over Orosi, Chavez and South Bakersfield to capture the Ron Robinson Classic black bracket championship on March 27.
Exeter routed Orosi 16-1 and followed that 15-run victory with a 7-3 beatdown of Chavez. In the tournament final, the Monarchs shut out South 2-0.
Exeter has been led all year by senior pitchers Aidan Robertson and Miles Munger. Robertson had a dozen strikeouts in the complete-game win over South and has registered a 6-1 record this season with a 1.81 ERA and 48 strikeouts.
Robertson is among team leaders in hitting (.333), RBIs (12), runs (16), and walks (15) and has stolen a Monarchs' best 15 bases on 16 attempts.
The 6-foot-1, 175-pound Robertson is also one of Tulare County's top dual-sport athletes. In football, he helped lead the Monarchs to an 11-2 record and a Tri-County Conference-Sequoia championship with 79 receptions for 1,124 yards and 11 touchdowns.
"He's an all-around player for us," Exeter head coach Kevin Kirkman said. "He plays centerfield. He covers gap to gap. He's got great speed. He's got a strong arm. He's throwing really well. He's had a good season hitting, too."
Munger is second on the team with 23 strikeouts.
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Munger and Robertson headline a strong senior class that also includes standouts Ruben Ruiz, Logan Montano and Gunnar Lentz.
"Most of the guys, they've played together since little league," Kirkman said. "They've played together for a long time. They work hard. It's a good group."
The Monarchs have also received breakout performances from freshman Cade McElmoyl and junior Tyler Trimble.
McElmoyl has three saves in five appearances and has not allowed a run in five innings. He is also batting 0.357 with 18 RBIs and two doubles.
Behind its senior class, Exeter is averaging 8.2 runs per game this season and is allowing just 3.1
"I expected the team to come back and compete very well this year," Kirkman said. "They been together for three years and with the confidence they had from having a successful football season, the corps of the group, I expected them to come back and be strong and compete well."
Tulare County Cream of the Crop Power Rankings
Here is one view of the top five baseball/softball teams in Tulare County (records are as of April 1):
Baseball
1. Redwood (12-4): The Rangers have won eight of their past nine games, including a 5-1 victory over Pleasant Grove-Elk Grove. Ace pitcher Erik Rico had nine strikeouts in a complete game.
2. Tulare Western (7-9): Since a 0-6 start, the Mustangs have gone 7-3 with back-to-back victories over Kingsburg and Arvin.
3. El Diamante (8-8): The Miners advanced to the championship game at the San Diego Lions Tournament but fell 9-8 to San Joaquin Memorial.
4. Mission Oak (8-7): The Hawks are on a three-game winning streak with victories against Bakersfield, Arvin and Mira Monte.
5. Central Valley Christian (12-5): The Cavaliers are the 2024 Fowler Easter Classic champions.
Softball
1. Tulare Union (9-4-2): Senior pitcher Mason Hatton has fired 107 strikeouts in 66 innings.
2. Redwood (8-6-2): Shelby Somavia has already unleashed four home runs this season.
3. El Diamante (9-6): The Miners have lost six in a row.
4. Mission Oak (11-5): Rebekah Beasley and Braelyn Serpa are both hitting above 500.
5. Tulare Western (9-5): Addison Lee, a senior, leads the team with 22 hits and is batting .468.
This article originally appeared on Visalia Times-Delta: Central Valley Christian, Exeter win baseball tournament championships
