Piedmont High School’s baseball team dropped two out of three with the win coming on the road against Oakland Tech on April 2.
The Highlanders beat the Bulldogs, 6-5 in eight innings. Max Fujimoto scored on a balk by losing pitcher Marcello Matsui. In the bottom of the eighth, Diego Delventhal gave up a leadoff single to Gustavo Locher, who then stole second and advanced to third on a wild pitch. Delventhal then walked Diego Delgado. Delventhal got Kalen Thomas to ground to short with Locher thrown out at the plate. He then struck out Oscar Novarro and (after an intentional walk) pinch-hitter William McNeill Cole to end the game.
Piedmont got out to a 3-0 lead in the top of the second. Fujimoto singled in one run with a second coming home on an error and the third scoring on a squeeze.
Oakland Tech got one back in the third. The Highlanders went up 5-1 with two in the fifth. Jack Meyjes doubled in one run with Aiden Bell drawing a bases loaded walk to drive in the second.
The Bulldogs scored twice in the sixth and seventh to force extra innings. Donovan Granger doubled in one run in the sixth with the other coming home on a groundout. An error brought home one run in the seventh and a squeeze bunt tied it up.
Massimo Mittone went the first six for Piedmont, allowing three runs on seven hits with five strikeouts and two walks. Delventhal went the final 1 2/3 to get the win, allowing no runs on one hit with three strikeouts and three walks.
Elias Thompson went the first 4 1/3 for Oakland Tech, allowing five runs (four earned) on five hits and four walks with three strikeouts. Matsui went the final 3 2/3, allowing an unearned run on one hit with three strikeouts and three walks.
Bell was two for three with a run and an RBI. Meyjes was two for four with a run and an RBI.
Granger finished two for three for the Bulldogs. Kalen Thomas was two for five with a run scored.
On March 31, the Highlanders lost 4-2 at San Leandro. Piedmont rallied late from a 2-0 deficit but couldn’t complete the comeback.
Ben Sorensen went the first two for Piedmont, allowing an unearned run and taking the loss. Meyjes went the next three, allowing three runs (one earned) on one hit and five walks with three strikeouts. Orion Sachs finished up, going a scoreless inning, walking two.
Sam Linnevers got the win for the Pirates, allowing just a hit in four scoreless innings with five strikeouts and two walks. Adrian Duran went the final three, allowing one earned run and three hits with two strikeouts and a walk.
The Highlanders got single runs in the sixth and seventh. Jonah Cha-Foster drew a one-out walk in the sixth and was singled in by Meyjes. Piedmont ended up with runners on first and second with two outs but Fujimoto popped out to end the threat. In the seventh, Mittone led off with a single. A one-out error put runners at first and third. Delventhal hit a sacrifice fly to make it 4-2. But Cha-Foster flew out to end the game.
On March 27, the Highlanders lost in eight innings to visiting St. Mary’s-Albany, 7-6. Ronan Gardner hit a sacrifice fly with the bases loaded in the top of the eighth to drive in the winning run for the Panthers.
St. Mary’s took a 6-0 lead with four runs in the second and two more in the third. Cullen Baenen singled in one run and Damien Nolan doubled in two to key the four-run second. Royal Smith had an RBI-double in the third.
Piedmont got a run back on an error in the bottom of the third. Meyjes doubled in a run in the fifth to make it 6-2. A four-run sixth tied the score. Enzo Ong singled in one followed by a Lucas Delventhal double to knock in another. Cha-Foster singled in a third. A throwing error on a ground ball hit by Meyjes tied the score. Meyjes started for the Highlanders, allowing six runs on 10 hits in 4 1/3 innings with two walks and a strikeout. George Bishop took the loss, throwing three innings and allowing one run on three hits and two walks with two strikeouts. Diego Delventhal went the final 2/3 of an inning. Logan Donoviel got the win, going the final 2 1/3 innings, allowing no runs on two hits with
three strikeouts and a walk.
Piedmont was next scheduled to face Arroyo on April 7 and then Lompoc at a tournament on April 8.