Calabasas Baseball Team Loses Big to Westlake

THOUSAND OAKS --The Westlake baseball team got a little payback against Calabasas in a 10-3 Marmonte League win Friday.

Blake Yuckert hit a three-run home run and drove in five runs for Westlake, avenging an 11-4 loss to Calabasas last month.

Calabasas had a 3-2 lead in the third inning, but the turning point in the game came in the fourth inning when Yuckert hit his three-run home run, Calabasas coach Ed Edsall said.

The home run gave Westlake a 5-3 lead, which was all Westlake starter Danny Nieves needed. Over the last four innings of the game, Nieves let only one batter reach base, on an error in the fifth inning. He retired the last eight batters he faced and was bailed out on a couple of crisply executed double plays.

"He did a great job," Edsall said. "He went out there and competed and won the game for Westlake."

As effective as Nieves was on the mound, Calabasas had its chances to score against him.

Calabasas left the bases loaded in the second inning without scoring a run. The Coyotes left two runners on base in the three-run, third inning. Jacob Fields reached third base with one out in the fifth inning, but was gunned down at the plate by center fielder Taylor Kahanowitch, completing a double play to end the inning.

"We had a couple inning-ending double plays that really helped," Westlake coach Zach Miller said. "We got the lead-off guy consistently out and with two outs, we were getting the guys out. We were able to pitch out of some tough situations today."

Westlake took a 2-0 lead in the first inning. Kahanowitch and Tim Wise each had RBI singles in the first to take the early lead.

Calabasas battled back in the third inning by scoring three runs. Alex Rubanowitz scored the first run on a botched double steal. Mitch Margolis delivered the big blow with a two-run, two-out single to give his team a short-lived, one-run lead.

"Mitch came up big, helped us get the three runs," Edsall said. "We play at our best when we get runners on, we move them around and we put pressure on the defense. We did that a couple innings, and we just didn't get the hit that we needed. We stranded a lot of runners on base. Hopefully we can make an adjustment as a team offensively so that when we do get runners on, we can move them around and get a big hit with runners in scoring position."

Westlake rallied in the fourth inning chasing Calabasas starter Sean Ladendecker. He walked Kahanowitch to lead off the inning and Collin Yelich singled to put runners on first and second.

Edsall pulled Ladendecker and put in Rubanowitch in relief. It looked like the move was going to pay off when Rubanovich got two quick strikes on Yuckert. But Yuckert knocked an 0-2 pitch over the right field wall for a three-run homer.

"Putting the ball in play is a problem that we've had in the past," Miller said. "That's why our record reflects that. Today he found himself in a situation to find a pitch, the wind's blowing in to the right, and he stayed inside the baseball and even with two strikes. That's what was big. Not the fact that he put the ball in play, but the fact that he conceded, wasn't trying to yank the ball, or do more than what he should have done."

Yuckert added an RBI double in the fifth inning and an RBI single in the sixth inning.

Westlake scored four runs in the sixth inning to cap an explosive day at the plate. The team collected 13 hits. Yuckert finished 3-for-5 and was a triple short of the cycle. Wise and Yelich each went 2-for-4 and Kahanowitch finished 2-for-2 with a walk. He scored two runs and drove in two runs.

Calabasas collected only three hits in the game. Calabasas also drew two walks and reached base on three errors.

"We need to move runners over a little better," Margolis said. "We could have scored some more runs there. If we did that a little better, it would have been a lot closer, probably would have won the game, been able to beat them."

Nieves pitched the complete game, striking out seven and walking two.

"He had good off-speed stuff," Margolis said. "He was mixing it well, locating pretty well. That just kept us off-balance most of the game. He did a good job. Just tip your hat to him."

Calabasas dropped to 4-5 in Marmonte League play. Westlake improved to 4-5 in the league.

Calabasas plays in the Chatsworth Tournament today. It faces Kennedy at El Camino Real High School at 2:30 p.m. Calabasas is 1-2 in the tournament, with a win over El Camino Real and losses to Chatsworth and Cleveland.

Margolis will get the start for Calabasas.