Lost Opportunities, OV Drops its First Game to Brea

In a dogfight, OV came up short by the tally of 8-5. The game started off like any blowout would- Travis Sparks Jackson makes quick work of the Wildcats in the Top of the 1st, going 1-2-3 to start the game. OV then loaded the bases, but only brought 2 runs in off of Robert Fogarty’s single- no big deal right?

Travis went through the middle of the Wildcats lineup unscathed, but in the 3rd inning, a 2 out rally followed by a 3 run homerun put OV in a 2-4 hole. OV got another run in off of a Freddy Sepulveda single. Travis pitched a short 3+ innings, but Forest Turner finished off the 4th inning no-problem. In the bottom of the 4th, OV tied the game up at 4-4. Forest allowed 1 run in the top of the 5th, but yet again, OV fired back and tied the score at 5-5 in the bottom of the 5th.

The game was broken open when Alex Knowles came in to pitch in the 6th inning. The situation at hand really called for Freddy Sepulveda or Colton Johnson- someone that can get outs quickly while sacrificing stamina. Alex allowed back to back hits, but finished the run in just 4 batters. OV’s offense didn’t respond in the bottom of the 6th, despite getting two runners on. Alex allowed a home run to start the 7th inning, but got back-to-back strikeouts and a ground ball to finish the day.

When it was all said and done, Ocean View came up with too little, too late. The good news, it wasn’t the “real rotation” with our pool of the Foothill Bracket clinched, Coach Borowski may have wanted to “save” Freddy and Colton and Blake for the upcoming playoff portion of the Round Robin, but the bad news, OV’s backup bullpen wasn’t exactly stellar. Travis showed some flashes of dominance, and as the season progresses, he should fill in to his “ridiculous upside.”

This loss was painful, ending one of the most exciting win-streaks that OV Baseball has ever had, but compared to last year, OV is head-and-shoulders beyond the escapades of OV’s 2009 early season struggles.

2011 OV Baseball Preview Part 2: Pitching

Another season, and five-part preview is in the wings as we look ahead to the 2011 OV baseball season, which will get underway on February 26th when the Seahawks take on Valencia High School. As we look to 2011, we started with Part 1, a general 2010 review and 2011 preview with a look at the schedule and key notes. Part 3, the position players. Part 4 will preview the Golden West League and Part 5 will be a look at the country and where OV fits in the regional/postseason scene.

For the first time in my time here at Ocean View, there are no doubts about how good OV’s bullpen is this year. OV should return to its typical Wednesday-Friday 2 man rotation this year as OV will have two of the best pitchers in the GWL on their team in Freddy Sepulveda and Blake Walker.

Blake was the Postseason ace, starting in every game of the playoffs, and boasted a season ERA of 4.18 in a team leading 77 inning pitched. Freddy held a 2.62 ERA in 21.1 Innings pitched, having only pitched the final few innings of each of the games he played in, and missing the entire first half of the season due to injury, with the team best of a .198 batters faced average. During league play, Colton Johnson filled the “Friday” starter role having 43.2 innings pitched, along with a 3.69 ERA, Johnson trailed Freddy slightly with the team’s second best BA at .233.

But aren’t we missing anyone from last season? The answer, shockingly, is no. The astronomical ERA’s from the beginning of the season were either held by Seniors, players that aren’t on the team any more, or players that most likely won’t be warming up in the bullpen this season.

But this year bodes what could be a more “traditional” year for the Seahawks. Truth is, and I apologize to both of them, Blake Walker and Colton Johnson aren’t true pitchers, and unlike last year, the defense is arguably better with Walker at his natural Shortstop position. That mentality alone should leave the rotation to a limited Walker and Johnson along with a “Friday” Freddy, but the truth is, OV could possibly use Alex Knowles as their Wednesday starter.

More after the jump

2011 OV Baseball Preview Part 1: General

 

Can OV defend their CIF Title in 2011?

Another season, and a five-part preview is in the wings as we look ahead to the 2011 OV baseball season, which will get underway on February 26th when the Seahawks take on Valencia High School. As we look to 2011, we’ll start here with Part 1, a general 2010 review and 2011 preview with a look at the schedule and key notes. Part 2 will look at the pitchers and Part 3, the position players. Part 4 will preview the Golden West League and Part 5 will be a look at the country and where OV fits in the regional/postseason scene.

OV opened up last season with a record of 2-5. During that seven game stretch, OV went through 6 pitchers, 4 didn’t throw another pitch for the remainder of the season, and 7 different lineups. On the contrary, OV pitched three different pitchers, 2 lineups, and won a CIF Championship in the final 7 games. The Seahawks were probably the biggest surprise in the league, without a doubt.

The season began with a loss, as Troy defeated OV 9-4, the starting pitcher? Alex Knowles, and in relief for him? Andrew Medrano. OV defeated Carter 7-6 a day later, but then dropped two games to CDM and Pacifica and got outscored by 19 runs in those two games. OV turned things around with a victory over Irvine, but then got swept by El Dorado in their annual double header. In out of league play, as mentioned before, OV went 2-5, and averaged 9.43 Runs Against.

League play was a different story though, OV won 8 consecutive league games before finishing 13-2 in the Golden West League. OV finished the regular season with two 10+ run victories over Saddleback.

Postseason time came quickly for the Seahawks, earning the #8 overall seed in the bracket poised for a first round match up with La Quinta High School. The Aztecs boasted a pretty good starting pitcher in Michael Hill, but OV overcame 5 errors to top the Aztecs 3-1. OV advanced to the second round against Bell Gardens.

The Bell Gardens game started off shaky for the Seahawks, as Bell Gardens opened up the game with 4 runs in the bottom of the 1st, but OV never lost focus and came storming back to tie the game and then take the lead in the top of the 5th. OV scored another 4 runs in the top of the 6th, but Bell Gardens responded with a 2 run bottom of the 6th. OV was held off the scoreboard in the top of the 7th, and in one of the most dramatic finishes of the season, held off Bell Gardens for the final score of 9-8. Ocean View squeaked by… with the then 27-1, top seeded Beckman Patriots coming up next.

More after the jump:

OV Baseball is Underway!

Ocean View is finally into baseball. Today the Hawks faced Coach Borowski’s old team- Valencia in an 8 inning scrimmage.

Matt Larsen pitched 2 innings, followed by Alex Knowles, Alden Matthews, Colton Johnson, Blake Walker, Nick Schulenburg and Andrew Medrano. Offensively, Andrew Medrano stood out with a 2 hit day, with 1 run scored.