T'wolves win CIF Opener
Timberwolves pound Malibu, 15-3, in playoff opener
Northwood High’s baseball team had one of its best offensive efforts of the year to defeat Malibu, 15-3, Tuesday afternoon in a CIF Division IV wild card game in Malibu.
With the victory, the Timberwolves (17-10) move on to meet Garden Grove (21-4) in the first round on Friday at 3:15 p.m. at Garden Grove. Northwood starter Brian DeLoach (5-2) pitched six solid innings, giving up three runs on three hits with six strikeouts and four walks.
The Timberwolves fell behind, 1-0, after two innings when the Sharks scored a run on a walk, stolen base, ground out and a passed ball.
DeLoach surrendered two more runs in the five inning on a walk, single, an error and a sacrifice fly. In the sixth inning DeLoach gave up a triple to left field with two outs, but the runner was stranded at third as the next batter grounded to second baseman Sean MacDonald who made a good throw to first to get the out.
Patrick Haselton came on to relieve DeLoach in the seventh inning and gave up one walk but got the last batter to fly out to center fielder Jameson Kuykendall to seal the victory.
The Timberwolves pounded out 16 hits, 10 were for extra bases. Northwood had seven doubles, one triple and two home runs.
In the third inning, with two outs, Michael Bonder doubled and Tim Carrier was intentionally walked. But the strategy backfired when Jason VanLeuven hit the second pitch over the left field fence for a three-run home run to put Northwood ahead, 3-1.
In the fourth inning, designated hitter Dylan Tasher doubled and Max Nikolenko followed with an RBI single. Michael Bonder then homered to left field. The Timberwolves put the game away in the sixth inning when they sent 11 batters to the plate and chased Sharks starter Brooks Fitch. After a walk and an error, the Timberwolves got an RBI single from Dylan Tasher, a single by Nikolenko, a base-clearing triple by Bonder, an RBI single by Carrier, followed by a walk to VanLeuven and back-to-back doubles by Kuykendall and Tim Radack.
With a 13-3 lead, Coach Rob Stuart was able to get many of the younger team members into the game in the sixth and seventh innings. In the seventh inning the Timberwolves scored two more runs on a two-out double by freshman Jordan Watanabe who came on to relieve Bonder at catcher. Carrier followed with an RBI single and later scored when pitch hitter Brian Ferrante was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded.
Michael Bonder was 3-for-4 with a home run, triple and a double. He scored three runs and had four RBI. Tim Carrier was 3-for-4 with a double, three runs scored and two RBI. Jameson Kuykendall was 2-for-4 with two doubles, a run scored and one RBI. Jason VanLeuven got his first home run of the season and was 1-for-2 with two runs scored and three RBIs. Max Nikolenko was 2-for-4 with two runs scored and one RBI. Tim Radack was 1-for-3 with a double and two RBI.
Northwood High’s baseball team had one of its best offensive efforts of the year to defeat Malibu, 15-3, Tuesday afternoon in a CIF Division IV wild card game in Malibu.
With the victory, the Timberwolves (17-10) move on to meet Garden Grove (21-4) in the first round on Friday at 3:15 p.m. at Garden Grove. Northwood starter Brian DeLoach (5-2) pitched six solid innings, giving up three runs on three hits with six strikeouts and four walks.
The Timberwolves fell behind, 1-0, after two innings when the Sharks scored a run on a walk, stolen base, ground out and a passed ball.
DeLoach surrendered two more runs in the five inning on a walk, single, an error and a sacrifice fly. In the sixth inning DeLoach gave up a triple to left field with two outs, but the runner was stranded at third as the next batter grounded to second baseman Sean MacDonald who made a good throw to first to get the out.
Patrick Haselton came on to relieve DeLoach in the seventh inning and gave up one walk but got the last batter to fly out to center fielder Jameson Kuykendall to seal the victory.
The Timberwolves pounded out 16 hits, 10 were for extra bases. Northwood had seven doubles, one triple and two home runs.
In the third inning, with two outs, Michael Bonder doubled and Tim Carrier was intentionally walked. But the strategy backfired when Jason VanLeuven hit the second pitch over the left field fence for a three-run home run to put Northwood ahead, 3-1.
In the fourth inning, designated hitter Dylan Tasher doubled and Max Nikolenko followed with an RBI single. Michael Bonder then homered to left field. The Timberwolves put the game away in the sixth inning when they sent 11 batters to the plate and chased Sharks starter Brooks Fitch. After a walk and an error, the Timberwolves got an RBI single from Dylan Tasher, a single by Nikolenko, a base-clearing triple by Bonder, an RBI single by Carrier, followed by a walk to VanLeuven and back-to-back doubles by Kuykendall and Tim Radack.
With a 13-3 lead, Coach Rob Stuart was able to get many of the younger team members into the game in the sixth and seventh innings. In the seventh inning the Timberwolves scored two more runs on a two-out double by freshman Jordan Watanabe who came on to relieve Bonder at catcher. Carrier followed with an RBI single and later scored when pitch hitter Brian Ferrante was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded.
Michael Bonder was 3-for-4 with a home run, triple and a double. He scored three runs and had four RBI. Tim Carrier was 3-for-4 with a double, three runs scored and two RBI. Jameson Kuykendall was 2-for-4 with two doubles, a run scored and one RBI. Jason VanLeuven got his first home run of the season and was 1-for-2 with two runs scored and three RBIs. Max Nikolenko was 2-for-4 with two runs scored and one RBI. Tim Radack was 1-for-3 with a double and two RBI.
