By Rick Assad
Like Wrigley Field in Chicago before lights were installed in 1988, the second oldest stadium in the big leagues hosted only day games.
When Burbank High ventured to Hoover on Tuesday afternoon for a Pacific League game, it was halted after seven innings because of darkness and it ended at 2-2.
The Bulldogs (0-4-1) struck for two runs in the third inning and Casey Peters and Carter Williamson held the Tornadoes (3-1-1) to five hits.
Peters, a tall and solid junior, went three-plus innings and surrendered four hits, striking out one, walking two, hitting two batters and yielding two runs.
Williamson, a hard-tossing right-handed junior, fanned six and gave up one hit with a hit batter.
In the bottom of the seventh, senior Jordan Mahler ripped a one-out single to right field for the Tornadoes and then stole second base.
Williamson induced sophomore Jacob Vangor to hit a grounder for the second out and with junior Jesse Carbonneau at the plate, the final out was made when Mahler was out at third base after getting caught stealing.
Bob Hart is the Burbank head coach and was pleased with the game overall.
“Defensively I thought we were fairly solid. On the hill it was very solid, but at the plate not so solid with 11 strikeouts which is a recipe for disaster,” he said. “A couple of guys had some very good at-bats and [senior] Tomas Angel had a big day at the plate [with a single and a double] for us, but all in all we are not putting the ball in play enough.”
Hart is confident the team will be better at the plate.
“We will continue to work on shortening swings and stacking those practices together and continue to improve,” he stated.
Hoover took a 1-0 lead in the first inning when senior Owen Marks reached on a one-out double to right center.
After a wild pitch, Marks scored on a sacrifice fly to center field from senior Isaiah Magana.
Burbank trotted eight batters to the plate in the third inning as sophomore Luka Kuiper (two hits) singled to right field to begin the frame.
Kuiper advanced to second base on a sacrifice bunt from senior Julian Recinos and scored on a double down the right-field line by Angel.
Senior Ryland Le Clair’s base hit to left center advanced Angel to third base and he scored when Williamson was hit by a pitch.
Peters allowed a one-out double to right center by Marks in the first inning and escaped with just one run being scored.
In the second, Peters gave up a leadoff double to Vangor and a two-out single to center field by sophomore Colton Gibson but neither scored and also saw Carbonneau fly to center for the first out and junior Alex Weimar to also fly out for the third out.
Peters yielded a one-out double to Magana in the third inning but recorded two out that included getting Carbonneau to bounce back to the box for the third out.
Peters faced three batters in the fourth frame but after walking consecutive hitters, was lifted from the game.
Williamson entered and retired Weimar on an infield popup and hit Marks which forced in a run that tied it at 2-2 but rallied and struck out Magana and Mahler both swinging.
Williamson faced four hitters in the fifth and ended the frame with a strikeout of sophomore Adan Carrillo, catcher to first base and also fanned two batters in the sixth inning.
Junior Ezekiel Canto had a single to center field in the first inning for the Bulldogs and junior Tanner Kramer had a single up the middle in the fourth inning.
Carbonneau pitched seven innings, fanned 11, walked one with three hit batters and seven hits allowed.
