BLAZER BASH: Arbor View cruises behind Cutting

Arbor View senior Ben Cutting was in attack mode Monday.

The left-handed starter threw first-pitch strikes to 15 of the 19 batters he faced, and he allowed just three hits in 5 2/3 innings as the Aggies baseball team beat visiting Sylmar (Calif.) 12-2 in six innings in the Blazer Spring Bash.

“If I get ahead, I feel like it’s tough for them to come back from it because then I can get 0-2 and either try to punch them out or let them hit into my defense,” Cutting said. “And I’m fine with my defense, because they’re solid behind me.”

Cutting struck out eight and didn’t walk a batter. He left with a runner on second and two outs in the sixth, and Sylmar’s Louis Jimenez tripled off reliever Chris Villarias to bring home the only run Cutting would allow.

“I felt tired coming in, but mixing up my pitches and my looks and everything, I felt like I kept them off balance, and it was tough for them to pick up the ball,” Cutting said.

Sylmar starter Jake Arevalo needed only seven pitches to get out of the first inning, but the Aggies were more patient after that as the offense got going. Ryan McHale led off the second with a solo homer to left-center field, and Arbor View plated two runs in the third to give Cutting some cushion.

“Early on we were kind of rushing through our (at-bats) and getting away from our approach,” Arbor View coach Jay Guest said. “We talked about being a little more patient at the plate and then we started having some good (at-bats) and started hitting the ball a little bit more around the yard.”

Nick Quintana had an RBI double in the two-run third and hit a two-run double that the left fielder never saw in a four-run fourth that pushed the lead to 7-0.

Quinn Gallagher had an RBI double in the fifth, and the Aggies scored four runs in the sixth to end the game by the 10-run rule. Quintana had an RBI triple in that inning, and Wyatte Velasco and Justin Rivera had back-to-back RBI singles with one out to end the game.

“I thought we did what we were supposed to do,” Guest said. “We hit the ball well, and Ben pitched great.”

Quintana was 3-for-4 with two doubles, a triple and four RBIs to lead the offense. Sam Pastrone and Jayce Gardner each went 2-for-3 for the Aggies, who had nine players with a hit.

“It’s a good way to start off a tournament,” Cutting said. “(Starting) 1-0 is always a good way to get us rolling. Hopefully it carries over into tomorrow, and we do the same thing we did today.”

Basic 2, Chatsworth (Calif.) 1 — At Durango, Roger Riley’s single over the left fielder’s head with one out in the bottom of the seventh inning plated Cory Wills with the winning run as the Wolves rallied by the Chancellors.

Basic trailed 1-0 entering the seventh before Logan Green started the rally with a single, and Wills drew a walk. Tanner Roundy singled to load the bases before Gehrig Timmons singled to plate Green with the tying run. After a strikeout, Riley’s hit ended the game.

Riley finished 3-for-4 with a double, and Timmons and Jack Wold each went 2-for-3 for Basic.

Roundy tossed a seven-hitter and struck out four.

Centennial 11, Verdugo Hills (Calif.) 0 — At Centennial, Jordon Wyke tossed a two-hitter and struck out six to lead the Bulldogs by the Dons in five innings.

Jake Portaro’s three-run home run highlighted a nine-run fourth inning for Centennial.

Jared Drizin was 2-for-2 with two RBIs, and Tyler Hennis went 2-for-2 for Centennial, which also got a two-run single from Jarod Grimm.

Centennial 3, Banning (Calif.) 0 — At Centennial, Anthony Saccente tossed a four-hitter, and the Bulldogs finally broke a scoreless tie with a three-run sixth inning in a win over the Pilots.

Saccente walked one and struck out seven.

Drizin led off the bottom of the sixth by drawing a walk and came around to score when Zachary Dixon’s bunt was thrown away.

Travis Stevens added a two-run homer in the inning for Centennial.

Shadow Ridge 10, Verdugo Hills (Calif.) 3 — At Centennial, Jake Wilson tossed a five-hitter and went 3-for-5 with a triple and three RBIs to lead the Mustangs by the Dons.

Wilson struck out five and walked two for Shadow Ridge, which led 10-0 after three innings.

Mike Davis was 4-for-4 with a run, and Trevin Reynolds went 2-for-2 with two doubles, two runs and two RBIs for the Mustangs.

Galena 12, Shadow Ridge 1 — At Centennial, the Grizzlies did all of their scoring in the third inning and routed the Mustangs in five innings.

Eric Jordan homered in the fourth inning for Shadow Ridge, which had just four hits.

Cimarron-Memorial 6, Poly (Calif.) 0 — At Cimarron, Tyler Giovinco and Niko Decolati combined on a three-hitter to lead the Spartans by the Parrots.

Decolati also homered, and Derek Decolati was 2-for-2 with an RBI for Cimarron, which scored five runs in the sixth inning.

Trent Bixby went 2-for-3 with a run and an RBI, and Alexander Marco was 1-for-2 with a run and two RBIs for the Spartans.

Northridge (Colo.) 9, Durango 8 — At Durango, Kaylor Werner was 3-for-5 with a home run, a double and five RBIs, and the Grizzlies scored twice in the seventh inning to rally past the Trailblazers.

Richard Mascarenas was 2-for-3 with three runs for Durango.

Chatsworth (Calif.) 9, Durango 1 — At Durango, the Chancellors scored four runs in the top of the fourth to take a 6-0 lead en route to the win over the Trailblazers.

Artie Gallegos went 3-for-3 for Durango.

Las Vegas 11, Wooster 6 — At Las Vegas, Antonio Gaxiola had three hits, and the Wildcats used a seven-run fifth inning to top the Colts.

Jaime Solis added three hits for Las Vegas.

Las Vegas 15, Seaside (Calif.) 3 — At Las Vegas, Julio Seperich was 1-for-3 with a double and four RBIs as the Wildcats topped the Spartans in five innings.

Eddie Ojeda was 2-for-3 for Las Vegas.

Diego Delgado and Brandyn Smith combined on a four-hitter for the Wildcats.

Sierra Vista 7, Kearns (Utah) 0 — At Sierra Vista, Jhared Gonzalez and Blake Kaplan combined on a five-hitter to lead the Mountain Lions by the Cougars.

Kaven Alferaz had three hits, and David Perez added two hits and two RBIs for Sierra Vista.