All Bases Covered: Chatsworth High Readies for More Baseball Success

With one regular-season baseball game remaining today at 3:30 p.m. against visiting Birmingham, Chatsworth (19-5) has already clinched the West Valley League title, and the Chancellors are a lock to be the No. 1 seed when City Section playoff pairings are scheduled to be released Wednesday.

Chatsworth has won nine City titles, seven over the past 11 seasons, but the Chancellors are coming off what was for a them an off-year after losing in the semifinals last year.

You can bet Chatsworth won’t be looking ahead, as the Chancellors are on a quest to reclaim their spot atop the City’s elite.

“We have to finish the season and not give anything away,” shortstop Brady Conlan said. “There is good competition out there, and we’re ready for the unexpected.”

Chatsworth has won five in a row by a combined score of 52-7.

“We’ve definitely put in a lot of hard work to finish the season strong,” right fielder/pitcher Steven Karkenny said. “We are very excited for the playoffs, and we are preparing for good teams that we’ll be up against.”

BIG HONOR

Karkenny, a returning All-City Section selection, has been named 2011 CIF/Farmer's Scholar-Athlete of Year for the L.A. City Section, according to a CIF State media release.

SOFTBALL SEASON ENDS

After making it all the way to the City Section softball finals a year ago, Chatsworth (10-19) struggled badly this season, losing 9 of its last 10 including a 14-0 loss to San Pedro on Thursday in the first round of the playoffs.

Perhaps there’s hope for the future, as most of the team’s top players are underclassmen. Tesharra Hill, a freshman, batted .368 with 16 RBIs, and classmate Kaitlyn Ryder batted .472 with four home runs.