Piedmont gets off to fast start
Piedmont High School’s baseball team is off to a good start with two wins and a tie in its first three games.
On February 27, the Highlanders beat host Skyline, 10-1. Piedmont got on the board in the top of the first with back-to-back doubles to start the game from Lucas and Diego Delventhal. Jonah Cha-Foster followed with a walk but Titans pitcher Isaac Okajima did a nice job to wiggle out of the jam with a fly out, a strikeout and a ground out.
Skyline answered back in the bottom of the first when Dallas Tucker led off with a double. He eventually scored on a bunt single by Dekker Desmond.
The Highlanders took the lead for good in the third. The Delventhals again led off the inning with hits, a single for Lucas and a double for Diego. Lucas came home to score on a balk. Diego Delventhal scored on a ground out by Jack Meyjes.
Piedmont got breathing room in the fifth on a two-run double by Meyjes. He scored when Tucker committed an error after catching a fly out. That made it 6-1.
Lucas Delventhal doubled in a run in the sixth. Cha-Foster tripled in two later in the frame. Meyjes then hit a sacrifice fly to close out the scoring.
Massimo Mittone got the win, going four innings and allowing just one run on four hits. He struck out three. Okajima took the loss, going four innings and allowing five runs on six hits with three strikeouts and two walks.
Lucas Delventhal finished three for five. Diego Delventhal ended up two for three.
On March 4, Piedmont defeated visiting Head-Royce, 4-2. Meyjes started for the Highlanders and was touched up for a two-run homer from Graham Sanger in the top of the first. It stayed 2-0 until the bottom of the third when Max Fujimoto led off by reaching on an error. Two outs later, Cha-Foster and Meyjes drew back-to-back walks. Mittone then unloaded for a grand slam to left.
Meyjes ended up going three innings, allowing the two runs on two hits with four strikeouts. Thomas Moision went two, allowing just one hit with a strikeout and two walks. George Bishop finished it off, going two innings and allowing one hit with two strikeouts.
Losing pitcher Ezra Goldfarb went 4 1/3 innings and struck out seven, but allowed three hits and three walks.
On March 6, Piedmont and California went nine innings but ended up tied 3-3. The Grizzlies struck first in the top of the first when Kai Watts and Jacob Casiano hit back-to-back singles with one out. Shaun Presley grounded out to score Watts.
California made it 2-0 in the second when a run scored on an error.
The Highlanders got a run back in the bottom of the second when two walks and a single loaded the bases with one out. Enzo Ong grounded into a force play to score Meyjes.
Piedmont took the lead in the third with two singles and a walk loading the bases with nobody out. Meyjes singled in one run to tie the score. Mittone then hit a sacrifice fly to give the Highlanders the lead.
It stayed that way until the seventh. Nate Cahalen led off with a double. One out later, Watts singled him in.
Watts advanced to third on a ground out but Presley popped out to end the inning.
Lucas Delventhal went three for four. Cha-Foster was two for four. Watts was three for five for California while Casiano was two for four. Calahen and Noah Jemo were two for three.
Mittone started and went five innings, allowing two runs on seven hits with two strikeouts and a walk. Ben Sorenson went three innings, allowing a run on three hits with two strikeouts and a walk. George Bishop went one inning, allowing two hits with a strikeout.
Ethan Thompson went the final four innings for the Grizzlies, allowing no runs on four hits with eight strikeouts and a walk.
Piedmont’s next game is scheduled for March 12 at El Cerrito.