The Soquel High baseball team brought the league’s hottest bats to Felton on April 26 and marched over their hosts, the San Lorenzo Valley Cougars, winning handily 10-2.
Izaak Silva kicked off the scoring for the Knights, driving in a first inning run, and then scoring himself as the Knights took a 2-1 first inning lead.
SLV senior Tyler Gilbert, who just returned from a broken finger, led off the second inning with a rolling single just over the first baseman’s outstretched glove. But on the next pitch, Gilbert got caught in a pickle when the Soquel catcher picked him off on a failed SLV bunt attempt.
Soquel’s pitcher Nate Hamby would retire the next two batters to close out the inning. Hamby would three-up, three-down the Cougars two more times in the game and whiffed five batters in five innings.
“They came to play,” Cougar Head Coach Shane Sutcliffe said. “(Soquel) was excited and loud all game while we were just flat.”
The Cougars dropped to 2-5 in the Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League and first place Soquel improved to 7-1.
In the third inning, the Knights filled the bases against SLV pitcher Nick Lipperd. Soquel’s Chris Stavrenos then drove in two more runs blasting a double over the third baseman’s head. After another single, Soquel would fill the bases and Soquel’s Jeff Meyer singled in two more runs.
The Cougars never had a chance to catch up as the Soquel batters kept finding holes in their defense.
Billy Mullins, Lipperd, and Gilbert earned two hits a piece to lead the Cougars. Rick Alves drove in a run off an unforced error.
SLV pitcher Nick Lipperd took the loss, allowing ten hits and eight runs in five innings.
The Cougars play next at Harbor High at 4 p.m., Friday, April 29 and then at Santa Cruz High at 4 p.m. May 3.
