Cypress High School’s baseball team defeated Pacifica 4-0 on Tuesday, creating a tie for first place in the Empire League with Pacifica. Both teams hold 8-1 league records and will face off again on Thursday, the final day of their regular season, at Pacifica at 3:15 p.m.
Cypress has been the Empire League champion every season since 2013. Starting pitcher Wyatt Rosales pitched 6⅔ scoreless innings, giving up four hits and two walks with three strikeouts. Rosales lowered his ERA to 0.60 and moved his record to 4-1-1. He has walked only 10 batters in 50 innings.
Centurions senior catcher Nick Montgomery hit a two-run home run, his third homer of the season. Sophomore left fielder Noah Johnson had two hits with an RBI. Senior right fielder Antonio Lujan hit two doubles.
Cypress took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the third inning. Justin Tillar led off the third with a single that just got past Pacifica second baseman Spencer Groff’s diving effort. Tillar went to second on John Short’s deep fly that bounced over the left-field fence for a double. Johnson’s hard-hit ground ball got through the middle for a hit to drive in Tillar.
Centurions sophomore Jake DeLaquil led off the fourth inning with a single and after an errant pickoff throw moved DeLaquil to second base and Jackson Pohl’s sacrifice bunt advanced hin to third. Montgomery, who struck out on three pitches, including a called third strike, followed with a high-arc shot over the left-field fence, just a few feet inside of the foul pole, for his third home run of the season.
Garrett Rodriguez scored Cypress’ third run of the inning, the game’s final run, on a wild pitch.
Pacifica had Jacob Zanaboni, who patrols center field very well for the Mariners, on third base in the fourth inning with one out. Rosales got a strikeout and a fly out to end that inning. Another Rosales strikeout in the fifth inning stranded Pacifia’s Jayson Juarez on third.
The Mariners had runners on first and second with one out in the top of the seventh inning when Rodriguez replaced Morales and got a strikeout and a ground out to end the game.
Cypress-Pacifica is one of the better rivalries in Orange County baseball. Rosales and Montgomery said they have known several players on the Pacifica roster for a long time.
“It’s awesome,” Montgomery said. “The parents got a rivalry going, the teams, the coaches. It’s fun every time we get to come out to the field to play.”
Weber got his 400th career coaching win and Pacifica’s Mike Caira got his 300th career coaching win. Short, who leads Cypress in RBIs with 27, pulled a hamstring while swinging at a pitch in the fourth inning. Weber said Shorts might be unavailable Thursday.
