Huntington Beach baseball tops Aquinas to open Boras Classic South
It's likely to be determined, among other things, over the course of three tournaments: the CIF Southern Section Division 1 championship come May, next month's National High School Invitational in Cary, N.C., and this week's 16-team Boras Classic, Southern California's prestige event.
The Oilers (7-0), boasting a booming lineup and unprecedented pitching depth, took an impressive first step along the path, riding Otto Espinoza's arm and Trevor Goldenetz's bat and glove to a 4-1 victory over Aquinas (5-1) in Tuesday morning's Boras opener at Mater Dei High School.
They've got La Mirada (8-1) up next, on Wednesday at 3 p.m.— the first real meeting since last year's regional semifinal classic — and aim to be facing off in Friday evening's final at JSerra, where consensus national No. 1 Corona (8-0) could be waiting.
'I think we're the best team in the country,' said Goldenetz, an All-CIF center fielder whose two-out, two-run double in the fourth and crashing-into-the-wall catch in the sixth separated the sides. 'I think we can do everything we want to do, as long as we keep going and stay as a team.
'I think we'll do everything we want to do: win a CIF championship, win this, and win North Carolina. I think we can do it all.'
The Oilers — No. 3 in the country, Sports Illustrated and MaxPreps agree — have it all written down.
'We have it written in the white board,' said Espinoza, a 6-foot-3, Cal-bound right-hander. 'We have everything on a check board, and they're all boxed and waiting to be checked.'
Espinoza surrendered just two hits in five shutout innings against an Aquinas attack that had scored 67 runs in its first five outings, working a 92 mile-per-hour fastball, his signature slider and, to his surprise, a sharp changeup. He twice worked out of one-out, man-on-second situations, and limited Falcons stars Mason Greenhouse and Jacob Bitonti to a walk in a combined six plate appearances.
'He was aggressive with his fastball,' Medure said. 'He was working both sides of the plate. I love that he was throwing in to some guys that probably weren't expecting the ball to come in, especially Greenhouse and Bitonti, but then threw a good-enough changeup to keep the barrel off of [the ball].'
The Oilers scored an unearned run in the third inning, as Ethan Porter doubled to the left-center gap with one out and came home on a two-out throwing error. Then, two more runs on Goldenetz's full-count double to right in the fourth, and another on Owen Bone's safety-squeeze bunt in the fifth.
Goldenetz, headed to Long Beach State, delivered the key blow. It all happened with two out: Jared Grindlinger singled up the middle, and John Petrie ripped a pinch-hit double off the base of the wall in left-center. Porter worked a full-count walk to fill the bases, and Goldenetz poked a line drive over first baseman Trevor Busby's head and down the right-field line.
'That was huge [to] crack it open like that ...,' Medure said. 'It was a 3-2 count, so the runners were going, and when Goldie hits the ball hard, he usually hits it to right. And I'm, like, oh my God, I don't want to send [Matt Haidl, back in to run for Petrie] from second on [Miami-bound Aquinas right fielder Mason] Greenhouse, because he has an unbelievable arm.
'To be able to get to 3-2 and have the runners move, I'm, like, OK, he gets a base hit, we're going to get two out of this.'
Bone's bunt in brought home Trenton Ramirez, pinch-running for Trent Grindlinger, who was hit by a pitch. Medure said Bone wasn't in the initial rotation of players when the Oilers began offseason preparations, but he's worked hard to get into that group.
Goldenetz's big catch made sure the lead was enough.
Estaban Orazaba was at second after his second single of the morning when Bitonti launched a fly ball to deep right-center with one out. Goldenetz raced 25 or 30 yards and — with Haidl guiding him — snagged it as he hit the wall.
Medure called it 'the biggest play of the game.'
Aquinas got its run in the seventh as Chase Davidson doubled and came home on Orlando Oakes' two-out single.
The Oilers have something of a rivalry with La Mirada (8-1), No. 8 on MaxPreps' California list and a 7-0 winner over Birmingham. The last showdown was a wild one, with the Matadores hitting three homers and six doubles to overcome a five-run deficit for a 10-8 victory. They faced off again a month ago, in the final preseason scrimmage.
'You wouldn't have known that was a scrimmage,' Medure said. 'It was a war ... We always seem to match up in this tournament. We matched up in '23 and we matched up in '19, so why not?
'There's going to be some fireworks, for sure.'
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