Both Orcutt Babe Ruth All-Star teams rebounded from first-round Monday losses and won respective regional elimination games Tuesday.
The Orcutt 14U All-Stars defeated Utah state champion Vernal 5-2 Tuesday at the 14U Pacific Southwest Regional Tournament at Murray, Utah. The Orcutt 13’s All-Stars routed host Northwest Bakersfield 15-4 in a 13’s Pacific Southwest Regional elimination at Bakersfield.
Orcutt 14U All-Stars 5, Vernal 2
After losing 2-1 to Northern California representative Tri-Valley in the first round Monday, Orcutt, the Central California No. 2 representative, got into the win column at the regional Tuesday.
Game MVP Grayson Cole went 2-for-3 with a double and two RBIs for Orcutt. Israel Rocha went 3-for-3, and Eli Hendricks was 2-for-2 as Orcutt racked up 11 hits.
Orcutt used three pitchers. Sam Grupe started and went 2.1 innings. He gave up one earned run. Cole relieved Grupe and yielded an earned run on three hits over 3.2 innings. Closer Xavier Horta finished up for Orcutt.
The win Tuesday was the first at a regional for this group of Orcutt players. The Orcutt 13’s went 0-2 at the regional last year. The Orcutt 14U squad won the Babe Ruth 14U World Series championship last year, the first Babe Ruth World Series title for a Santa Maria Valley team.
Orcutt will play the Madera-Torrance loser Wednesday at 1 p.m. in another elimination game. Madera beat Orcutt for the Central California state tournament championship. Torrance won the Southern California state tournament title.
Tri-Valley 2, Orcutt 1 (Monday)
“We lost a tough one,” Orcutt manager Adam Cole said after the game. “Tri-Valley’s runs came on two bloopers in the first inning with two outs. We hit balls right at people and couldn’t get the big hit when we needed it.”
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Israel Rocha was the Orcutt starting pitcher and went 5.1 innings, giving up six hits, striking out five batters and walking three. Lucas Woodruff was the Orcutt closer.
Orcutt 13U All-Stars 15, Northwest Bakersfield 4
The Central California state tournament champion jumped in front early with three runs in the first inning then broke the game open with six runs on three hits in the second.
Orcutt’s Eli Solis singled in the initial run of the game in the first inning. The second Orcutt run scored when Aiden Cruddas hit into a fielder’s choice, and the third came in on an Easton Verbryke ground out.
Mason Padilla singled home an Orcutt run in the second inning. Solis singled in another run then Verbryke singled home two more. Elijah Ortiz notched an RBI with a bases-loaded walk then another Orcutt run scored on a wild pitch.
Orcutt used four pitchers. Cruddas started and pitched two scoreless innings, allowing two hits. Ozzy Gerfen pitched the last two innings, shutting out Northwest Bakersfield on two hits.
Solis, the MVP of the Central California state tournament, went 3-for-5 with four RBIs. Verbryke drove in three Orcutt runs, and David Bluem drove in two.
The Central California state tournament champion racked up 11 stolen bases. Bluem and Kaeden MacDonald stole two bases each.
Orcutt will play Torrance, the No. 2 Southern Cal representative, Wednesday at 10:30 a.m. in another elimination game.