Burroughs High and Crescenta Valley were each undefeated in Pacific League play while Arcadia had one loss heading into Tuesday’s league showdown with the Apaches at Tomahawk Field.
After an 8-4, eight-inning setback to Arcadia and the Falcons’ 8-0 triumph over host Muir, Crescenta Valley is now 8-0 while the Indians and Apaches are both 6-1.
“We had opportunities, but I give credit to their pitcher,” Burroughs coach Craig Sherwood said. “He did a good job of throwing. I like those side-arm pitchers.”
Trailing 4-2, the Indians scored two runs in the seventh inning and sent six batters to the plate.
The frame began with Riley Hooper getting hit with a pitch by Brett Porter and Randy Catlett getting a single to left field that moved Hooper to second base.
Justin Palafox then laid down a sacrifice bunt and Jason Whaley had an run-scoring ground out that scored Hooper. Gabriel Pellot, who came in as a pinch runner for Catlett, crossed the plate on an error.
“That was a challenge,” Sherwood said of the early 4-0 deficit. “I think this is a great team [Burroughs] with outstanding talent. But this puts Crescenta Valley in the cat-bird seat and we’re going to have to play well the rest of the way in order to make the [CIF] playoffs.”
The Apaches, who lost to host Glendale 2-0, iced the affair with a four-run eighth inning when 10 batters waltzed to the plate.
Ryan Tuck, who had four hits that included a double, drove in a run with an infield hit, while Jacob Lopez (two hits) was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded.
Loren Iwasaki (two hits) forced in a run with a bases-loaded walk and Mike Saenz was nicked with a pitch with the bases filled.
“We’ve had trouble scoring runs,” Arcadia coach Nick Lemas said. “This was a huge win for us. We put pressure on them offensively by putting the ball in play.”
The Indians (13-3) fell behind 1-0 in the top of the first inning when Iwasaki’s base hit off Jesse Galindo drove in Tuck (three runs batted in), who was hit by a pitch.
It became 3-0 through two frames after Noah Falcon (two hits) hit a sacrifice fly that made it 2-0 and Lopez’s single gave the Apaches (12-6-1) a 3-0 advantage. Lopez drove in three runs.
It ballooned to 4-0 with a run in the fourth inning when Tuck’s double drove in Falcon, who led off the inning with a double down the left-field line.
Galindo went three and two-third innings while allowing seven hits with two hit batters.
Burroughs trimmed the lead in half after a two-run fifth inning when Hooper (two hits) led off with a single to left field and scored on Whaley’s single to left. Justin Palafox (two hits) reached base on a hit to left field and scored on an error.
Shaine Leonard picked up for Galindo and took the loss after toiling three and two-third frames, surrendering four hits, two walks, with one strikeout and one hit batter.
Whaley went one-third of an inning with one walk, one hit allowed and one hit batter, while Catlett tossed one-third of an inning with one hit batter.
Porter toured six innings with eight hits allowed, one walk, three strikeouts and one hit batter, while Falcon collected the win and went two innings with one hit batter, one strikeout and two hits surrendered.
