By Rick Assad
One inning tilted the balance of the Pacific League baseball game between host Burroughs High and Pasadena in favor of the home team.
A six-run first inning by the Bears put the Bulldogs behind the eight-ball and despite scoring in consecutive frames, Burroughs eased into a 10-3 victory on Friday night.
Two pitchers tamed the Bulldogs for much of the game as junior right-hander Kayson Montgomery, who also added a double and a single with a run batted in, surrendered eight hits across five and two-third innings, allowing three runs with seven strikeouts.
Montgomery surrendered two singles in the first frame and two singles in the second that included an RBI single to right field by Jackson Bradley.
Pasadena (1-6 and 0-2 in league) scored two runs in the third and garnered three hits that included an RBI single to right field by Aaron Martinez and a run-tallying double to right center by Harrison Gwaltney.
Montgomery had four strikeouts after the third inning and reached seven after the fifth inning.
Senior Jack Guest toured one and one-third frames and fanned three and walked three batters for Burroughs (4-1 and 2-0 in league).
Jake Rauenswinder, a junior, doubled and tripled and collected four RBIs and junior Elliot Ross belted two doubles.
Matt Magallon is the Burroughs head coach and believes his club will play hard every game.
“I thought we played well and played to the standard that we have set. I think this is what Burroughs baseball is,” he said. “We will pitch and throw strikes. We will hit and put pressure on teams. It’s fun to watch.”
The Bears batted around in the first inning as Ross led off with a bloop double to left field.
Senior Slater Mersola and senior Devin Whittiekiend drew back-to-back walks and an infield hit by senior Jack Smith scored a run.
Rauenswinder’s triple to right center tallied three runs and senior Thomas Martin added a sacrifice fly to right field.
Montgomery slapped a double down the right-field line and scored on a wild pitch.
The fifth hit in the frame, a two-out triple to right center field, came off the bat of senior Logan Drossin.
The Bulldogs countered with a solo run in the second inning and added two runs in the third that cut the lead in half, 6-3, but the Bears sent seven batters to the plate in the fifth inning for a 9-3 lead and the key hit was Montgomery’s RBI single to left field.
A one-run, five-batter inning in the sixth followed as Smith clubbed a two-out single to left field and scored on a double to right field by Rauenswinder.
Senior Zack Guevara added a single to right field in the third inning and stole second base and third but didn’t score.
Dylan Derosier was Pasadena’s starting pitcher and went one inning with five hits allowed and two walks.
Reese Kim delivered five innings with five hits yielded, along with four strikeouts and one hit batter for the Bulldogs.
