There was an extreme case of young versus old up on the hill in Carpinteria Tuesday.
Pacifica Christian brought up an 11-man baseball team that fielded eight freshman for its CIF Division VII second-round contest at Cate.
The Rams, meanwhile, played six alumni.
After going through graduation on Sunday, the elders came out on top in a 9-3 decision that will keep their high school baseball careers alive despite already having diplomas.
“It feels kind of strange and out of place, but it’s nice to still be playing baseball,” said graduate Efren Ruiz, who went 2-for-3 with a pair of RBIs and a run on the day. He’ll be studying electrical engineering at Harvey Mudd College in Claremont next year.
Cate (15-1) busted the game wide open and got all the offense it would need in an eight-run third inning, capitalizing on key errors by the Seahawks (13-4) and sending 11 batters to the plate.before all was said and done.
John Warren, who went 3-for-3 on the day, started the rally with an RBI single to left field. George Lou drove in two more two batters later on a grounder that made it into right field. The Rams scored next on a wild pitch before expanding the lead to 9-0 on a two-RBI double by Michael Moya that got through the left fielder and to the wall, getting Moya all the way to third.
Cate used its speed in a crafty way throughout the game. The Rams’ offensive strategy has included double-steals, squeeze plays and aggressive choices all season, and Tuesday was no exception. Their first run was scored in the bottom of the second, as Lou led off with a single and got all the way to third in the blink of an eye on a sacrifice bunt by catcher Nathan Vice. Cate’s baserunners also took more-than-healthy leads throughout the day and drew a pair of balks from Seahawks pitchers.
“We practice those types of things every day in practice. Coach (Ben) Soto puts a lot of thought into our running and it’s paid off,” said Ruiz.
Michael McMahon got the start for the Rams, going five innings without giving up an earned run. Moya came in to finish things off.
Soto proudly reported that all of his graduates showed up to practice on time (for the first time ever) for Monday’s practice.
“It took them til’ graduation to grow up,” he joked.
He was sad, however, that Josh Han was not able to stay with the team after receiving his diploma, instead heading back home to Korea. Soto and Han had developed a father-son relationship of sorts during his time at Cate.
“I’m going to call him tonight and tell him about the game. I sort of adopted him this year. He calls me ‘Dad’ and I call him ‘Son’,” said Soto.
The Rams will host the semifinals at their gorgeous new facility on Thursday, when Milken Community pays a visit with a trip to the semifinals on the line. First pitch is scheduled for 3:15 p.m.
CATE 9, PACIFICA CHRISTIAN 3
Pacifica Christian…000 101 1 — 3 7 4
Cate…018 000 X — 9 10 3
Pierandozzi-Howes, Wilson (3) and Wilson, Pierandozzi-Howes (3); McMahon, MiMoya (6) and Vice.
2B — C: Warren, Ruiz.
