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Titans win showdown for first

Oakland Tribune, May 10, 2008 by Jimmy Durkin

OAKLAND -- In all likelihood, Bip Roberts will be back in uniform at McAfee Coliseum next Saturday.

No, Roberts -- the former major league infielder who spent the final half-season of his 12-year playing career with the Oakland A's in 1998 -- isn't making a comeback.

This trip to the Coliseum will be as a coach. The Skyline High alum and first-year head coach watched as his squad got its bats going early and beat Oakland Tech 15-6 Friday for a win that likely will lead to its fourth-straight Oakland Athletic League title.

"I'm going back," Roberts said. "It's going to be fun."

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The winner of the OAL represents the Oakland Section in the TransBay Series against the San Francisco Section champion. The series opens May 17 at 1 p.m. at the Coliseum before shifting to the University of San Francisco for Game 2 on May 20.

Skyline (16-5-1, 11-2 OAL) has a half-game lead over Tech (14-5, 11-3). The Titans have two games remaining and the Bulldogs have just one. By winning two of the three games between the two teams, Skyline owns the tie-breaker. So it would have to lose both of its games next week against Castlemont to give Tech a title shot.

"The seniors want to go out as four-time champions," Roberts said. "I don't see anything stopping that."

The festive environment at Tech's Carter Field quickly turned solemn in the bottom of the first inning.

The Bulldogs had just taken a 2-1 lead on a two-run double by Ryan Brekke and had Devante Marsh at the plate. Having come out of his crouch after making a strike call, home plate umpire John Brown collapsed and was momentarily unconscious.

Roberts and Tech coach Eric Clayton rushed to his aid, and after Brown resumed consciousness, he was taken by ambulance to the hospital, appearing to be in good spirits.

"That put the whole game in perspective right there," Roberts said. "I've never been so nervous in my life."

After a nearly 40-minute delay in the game, Skyline pitcher Miguel Acosta got out of that inning without further damage.

In the top of the second, the Titans offense got to work. The Titans scored eight runs on six hits, the major blow being Evan Haarz's three-run homer. Julian Coffin-Lennear and Daniel Richman ad two-run singles in the inning that made it a 9-2 game.

Tech got within 9-5 in the bottom of the inning, with Josh Freund driving in a run with a sacrifice fly and Brekke hitting a two-run single.

But a two-run homer by Richman in the third boosted it to 11-5, and a four-run sixth by Skyline put it out of reach.

The win concluded a nervous stretch for the Titans, who three weeks ago were staring at a two-game deficit in the standings.

"I didn't get a whole lot of sleep last night," said Richman, who was 3-for-5 with five RBIs. "We battled. I couldn't be more proud of this team. We knew we had our backs against the wall."

It was also a tough blow for Tech, which won the first meeting with Skyline and was seeking its first title since 2004. Many of the team's seniors exchanged hugs and tears after the game.

"For me that's the hardest thing," Clayton said. "They've tried so hard and put in all the work."

Oakland 9, Castlemont 5

After allowing three hits and two earned runs in the first two innings, the Wildcats' Tyre Mills IV settled down to record a complete-game win over the visiting Knights.

Mills allowed four hits and no runs over the final five innings,and finished with 11 strikeouts and three walks for Oakland (9-7-2, 8-5 OAL).

Raul Hernandez and Andreotti Bender helped Oakland rally from a 2- 0 deficit in the bottom of the first inning. Hernandez tied the game with a two-run double to right field, and three batters later, Bender gave the Wildcats a 4-2 lead with a two-run single to center field.

Marcel Hunter went 2-for-2 with a double, a triple and two runs scored to lead Castlemont.

Fremont 14, McClymonds 11

Andy Tu's two-out, two-run double that scored Antar Patton and Jose Alvarez highlighted a five-run third inning and helped the visiting Tigers rally from a 3-2 deficit and beat the Warriors.

Gerardo Soto widened the Tigers' lead to 12-7 heading into the sixth inning with a two-run homer.

McClymonds pulled to within 12-10 in the bottom of the sixth, but Fremont countered with two runs in the seventh.

Patton then came on in relief of Alvarez in the bottom of the seventh to record the save. Alvarez had nine strikeouts and nine walks in picking up the win.

Robert Bringham went 2-for-2 with a triple and two RBIs to lead McClymonds.

Titans win showdown for first

Oakland Tribune, May 10, 2008 by Jimmy Durkin

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