Palos Verdes Gets Win to Make Playoffs

Needing a win to continue its season, the Palos Verdes Sea Kings baseball team did exactly that, beating the Mira Costa Mustangs, 3-0, Thursday at home behind a complete game shutout from Matt Smith.

Coming into Thursday’s game, both schools needed a win in their final league game to advance to the CIF playoffs as the number four seed in the Bay League. While Mira Costa came in with a league record of 4-5, after beating the Sea Kings 1-0 Tuesday, Palos Verdes came in with a 3-6 league record.

“Credit goes to our guys. They battled and didn’t give up,” Palos Verdes head coach Evan Fujinaga said. “They came today with a good attitude. We did what we had to do.”

A tell-tale sign for how the rest of his day would go, Smith struck out the Mira Costa hitters in order to begin the game and finished the day with a season high 10 strikeouts.

In seven innings of work, the righty gave up four hits, while walking two for the win. Smith now moves to 6-3 on the season.

While Smith said he’s had the tendency to struggle in the first inning this season, he felt especially good in the beginning of Thursday’s game.

“It started with Matt Smith on the mound. He was phenomenal,” Fujinaga said. “This is how he can pitch when he has command of all three of his pitches.”

After Smith struck out all three batters in the top of the first, he got a two-run cushion in the bottom half of the inning, when Andrew Messori hit an RBI double to right center field, plating Bobby Stahel, who got on base earlier in the inning with a lead-off single.

Messori then scored on an RBI single to center field off the bat of Jeremy Barth, giving the Sea Kings an early 2-0 lead.

“It makes things so much easier with early runs,” Smith said. “I can pitch to contact. Our offense is rolling, so it was a fun time.”

Going 1-for-3 on the day, Messori was one of nine seniors honored before the start of the game.

“Everyone just wanted to give it their all and leave everything on the field,” Messori said. “Throughout the game everyone seemed to be in it the whole time.”

The Sea Kings tacked on another run in the fourth inning, when after Connor Averill hit a double off the wall in center field, he scored on two overthrows. The first came when Mira Costa starter Turner Conrad threw over the second base bag and into center field on an attempted pick-off and the second came on center fielder Bryan Afzali overthrowing third on the same play, allowing Averill to score.

Three runs was more than enough support for Smith on a day that saw him allow only two runners past second base.

The biggest threat the Mustangs posted came in the second inning, when with two outs, Smith surrendered a walk and then a double, putting runners on second and third. Yet, Smith hunkered down and struck Austin Henning out to end the inning.

Losing their last three league games, including a 1-0 loss to West last Friday and 2-1 loss to Mira Costa Tuesday, the Sea Kings and Fujinaga said it felt nice to be on the other side of a close win.

“The guys knew their backs were against the wall. They realized that today was the day,” Fujinaga said. “That is the special thing about high school athletics, you get sentimental. When you step back and these guys realize this could be their last game at home, I think special things can happen and that was the case today. Guys were saying this isn’t going to end today.”