By Steve Ramirez
For the Damien High School baseball team, nothing quite matches up with a win over rival Glendora, except when it comes in a CIF-Southern Section playoff game.
Kevin Hindes scored on an errant throw in the top of the sixth and Damien ousted 2010 Division 2 champion Glendora with a 6-4 victory over host Tartans in a first-round game on Thursday.
The Spartans, who didn’t play their rival during the regular season after Glendora was moved from the Sierra League to the Baseline League, improved to 16-12 and advanced to face either Crescenta Valley or Notre Dame of Sherman Oaks in Tuesday’s second round at a site to be determined.
Glendora, which won it’s first divisional title last season, finished 17-7-1.
“In order to get to the top, you want to go through the top,” Damien coach Al Leyva said. “They are a great team, well-coached with great players. It was a challenge for us, but it’s nice to get one on them. But more importantly, we just have to get ready for the next game.” (To continue click thread)
CIF-SS Playoffs
Thursday’s first-round results
Division 2
Damien 6, Glendora 4
Arroyo Grande 8, South Hills 3
Chino Hills 2, Peninsula 1, 8 innings
Division 4
La Salle 3, Covina 2
Chino 9, San Dimas 2
Bishop Amat 10, Ridgecrest Burroughs 1
For Glendora, this one might be especially difficult to accept. The Tartans, who went 12-3 to win the Baseline League, led 4-1 lead after three innings and had ace Sean Beckman on the mound.
But sloppy defense did Glendora in. The Tartans had three errors and a passed ball, which led to three runs, including the eventual game-winner in the sixth.
“That’s going to happen,” Glendora coach Don Henley said. “We made some mistakes, and it cost us. You’d like to play your best game in a situation like this.
“But (Damien) played a real tough, competitive game. They took advantage of those mistakes, which good teams do.”
Damien, which cut it to 4-2 on an error in the fourth, tied it at 4 in the fifth when Glendora shortstop Martin Gallegos bobbled a groundball and threw late to first, scoring Chad Lee.
The Spartans then took a 5-4 lead in the sixth. Hindes led off the sixth with a double. Mark Segat, with one out, followed with a groundball, but second baseman Nick Cooksey threw wild to first, scoring Hindes.
Granados followed with an RBI double to make it 6-4.
Lee, after hitting the lead-off batter in the seventh, then retired the final three batters, getting Cooksey on a fly out to win it.