Sports
BASEBALL: Aptos Blanks Del Mar in First Round of Playoffs
Mariners ace Koenig looks the part in complete game shutout against Dons.
The Score: Aptos 5, Del Mar 0
The Star: Aptos High starting pitcher Jared Koenig held the Del Mar High baseball team hitless, minus just one select member of the order. Koenig allowed just two hits on the day—both came to Del Mar senior captain Cullen McGagin—helping his team shutdown and shutout their first round opponent in a Central Coast Section Division II playoff game held at Aptos High on Thursday afternoon.
Aptos won the game 5-0, keyed by Koenig’s work on the mound and at the plate. The southpaw helped his own cause in the fourth inning, drilling an RBI double to the gap in left-center field. The shot scored teammates Sandy Gonzales and Nico Bailey to put Aptos firmly ahead by four runs after four innings of play.
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The Turning Point: Aptos put runs on the board in two of the first three innings of play, forcing the visitors to have to play catch-up in unfamiliar territory. Senior catcher Logan Trowbridge ripped an RBI double into the gap to score Orey Wafford in the second, doubling the Mariners lead to 2-0.
After the big knock by Koenig in the fourth, Aptos added one last scoring tally in the fifth inning off a wild pitch by Del Mar starter Tim Emory.
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The Quotes: “It was nice to get all my pitches over and placed where I want them,” Aptos starter Jared Koenig said after the first round playoff win. “I feel like we got the small ball working really well right now, but we’re also mixing in some big hits when we need them. I just want a couple more games just like this one.”
Del Mar head coach Frank Deats was disappointed with the end result, but happy his team achieved a team goal to make the CCS Playoffs.
“We have to hit the ball better than we did today,” Deats said. “We didn’t strike out much, but the times we did weren’t pretty.”
What's Next? Aptos advances to Saturday’s quarterfinal round and will play No. 3 seed and Monterey Bay League champion Monterey High at Monterey Peninsula College. The game is set to begin at 11 am.
Bottom Line: The Mariners took advantage of several scoring chances on Thursday and nearly had a few more runs to tack onto the final tally. Aptos runners were thrown out at third once and a home plate twice during the first round bout. They’ll need every run they can get against the pitching –rich roster of Monterey High on Saturday.
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Aptos 5, Del Mar 0
AP- 1 0 1 2 1 0 x- 5 10 0
DM-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 – 0 2 4
WP: Koenig. LP: Emory
Records: AP 18-10, 10-2 SCCAL. DM 18-9-1, 14-6-1 Santa Teresa .
