Arden Pabst from Harvard-Westlake of North Hollywood and Raeann Garza from James Logan of Union City are among those who are written up in this week’s statewide honor roll.
Best of baseball and softball include Cypress player who pitched a no-hitter and hit two doubles, another girls slugger from Carson named Tautalafua and a girl who has hit more triples than made outs for the season.
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Baseball
Robert Bennitt (North, Bakersfield)
A star for the Stars, Bennitt was perfect at the plate going 5-for-5 to tie a school record for hits in one game during a 17-1 romp past Foothill of Bakersfield. He also tied a career best with six RBIs.
Phil Bickford (Oaks Christian, Westlake Village)
Handed the ball to start in the championship game of the Redondo tournament, Bickford was dominant as he allowed just two hits and struck out 15 as Lions captured the title with a 4-1 win over Bonita of La Verne, a team that had won 10 straight games.
Justin Calomeni (Bellarmine, San Jose)
Getting the call to start the Bells’ big matchup against state No. 2 St. Francis of Mountain View earlier this week, he allowed just one hit, which came in the 7th inning, to help the Bells knock off the Lancers 1-0. St. Francis pitcher John Galvin allowed just one hit as well but that hit drove in the walk-off game-winning run in the bottom of the 7th inning.
Gage Canning (Ramona)
Earlier this week, this talented sophomore hit his eighth home run of the season as the Bulldogs defeated Del Norte of Poway 4-3. We also wanted to mention his performance from a game earlier this season that saw him go 7 for 7 at the plate with three doubles, a triple, two home runs and seven runs batted in during a 29-2 win over Mission Vista.
Eddie Carranza (Garden Grove)
Earning honors as the OCVarsity Baseball Athlete of the Week, he did a bit of everything for the Argonauts in their two wins over Santiago of Garden Grove. He hit a grand slam home run and drove in five runs during a 24-10 win and he drove in two runs while striking out eight and not allowing a run during an 8-0 triumph.
Aaron Cross (Mater Dei, Santa Ana)
After pitching five innings without allowing an earned run in last week’s 11-3 win by the Monarchs against St. John Bosco of Bellflower, Cross stretched his streak of not allowing an earned run to 35 innings. The lefty senior also began this week with just one earned run allowed for the season in 47 innings.
Efrain Del Rio (Dos Palos)
He hit for the cycle to tie a school record with Stan Holmes, who hit for the cycle two times in 1976. Efrain was 4-for-4 at the plate and had five RBIs as the Broncos beat Mendota 11-1 in a West Sierra League game.
Aaron Digiamarino (Webb, Claremont)
Not only did Aaron struck out five in his five innings on the mound but he also doubled twice and drove in three runs as the Gauls defeated Rio Hondo Prep of Arcadia 8-2. He has helped Webb earn a spot in the Division V state rankings.
Jack Hartman (Cleveland, Reseda)
One out away from a no-hitter, he allowed his only hit of the game in the seventh inning to lead the Cavs past El Camino Real of Woodland Hills 4-0. Hartman also had nine strikeouts.
Will Lighthouse (Prospect, Saratoga)
Last week, Lighthouse shined with six hits and drove in five runs during a 35-1 win over San Jose but the game we wanted to make sure we mentioned was back in March as he went 6 for 6 with two home runs and 10 runs batted in during a 35-0 win over Yerba Buena of San Jose. In the win against San Jose, the Panthers as a team had 33 hits and scored 14 runs in two different innings.
Kevin Lillicrop (Cypress)
Not only did he have two doubles during a three-hit performance during the Centurions’ 3-0 win over Pacifica of Garden Grove earlier this week, but he also struck out six on the mound and didn’t allow a hit for a no-hitter.
Arden Pabst & Ezra Steinberg (Harvard-Westlake, North Hollywood)
Arden hit a grand slam home run and drove in six runs while Steinberg went a perfect 5-for-5 in the Wolverines’ 19-0 win over Chaminade of West Hills.
Blake Redman (Camarillo)
With little room for error, he made one run stand to get the Scorpions a 1-0 win over Pacifica of Oxnard. Redman did it by pitching a no-hitter and almost threw a perfect game since he didn’t walk anyone either.
J.R. Robinson (Whitney, Rocklin)
Pitching four scoreless innings and striking out six, Robinson also had two triples and drove in two runs as the Wildcats moved to 24-1 on the year with a 16-0 win over El Camino of Sacramento earlier this week.
Hunter Simmons (St. Francis, Mountain View)
Helping the Lancers avenge a loss to Serra of San Mateo earlier this season, he drove in six runs during their 13-3 win last week over the Padres.
Sam Stavang (Bonita, La Verne)
A sixth-inning error away from perfection, he struck out 10 and didn’t allow a hit for a no-hitter in the Bobcats’ 9-0 win over Los Altos of Hacienda Heights.
Matt Trask (Davis)
A standout junior already committed to UCLA, Trask has helped Davis to an unbeaten record in the very strong Delta Valley League. He had two-hitter in six innings when the Blue Devils beat state-ranked Elk Grove two weeks ago and for the season is 6-1 with a 0.93 ERA. He went 1-for-2 with two RBIs earlier this week in a 10-0 win over Monterey Trail to slightly raise he batting average to .443 with a .545 on-base percentage.
Kyle Wedel (Wasco)
He tied a school record by getting five hits, which included two doubles and four RBIs, as the Tigers beat Arvin 24-10 in a South Sequoia League game.
Softball
Becca Bell (Burroughs, Ridgecrest)
For the third time this season, she hit two home runs in a game but it wasn’t enough to keep the Burros from suffering an 8-7 loss to Victor Valley of Victorville earlier this week. Bell, who also had four hits and three RBIs in the loss, now has 12 homers for the season.
Brooke Bolinger (Yucaipa)
Just a sophomore, this left handed hurler not only didn’t allow a hit in the Thunderbirds’ 3-0 win over Cajon of San Bernardino but she also had 16 strikeouts.
Kristina Brown (Dixon)
A week after homering twice and driving in six runs during a 12-2 win over Capital Christian of Sacramento, she homered and drove in six more runs in a 15-0 win for the Rams over West Campus of Sacramento.
Alyssa Burk (Fontana)
This sophomore right hander did allow a hit but she struck out 17 as the Steelers defeated Bloomington 3-0 in Sunkist League action.
Alexxiss Diaz (Highland, Palmdale)
Despite going just five innings, the game went long enough for her and several of her teammates to put up big numbers in a 32-1 romp past Littlerock. Diaz went 5 for 6 with two home runs while driving in nine runs. Rachel Garcia had 11 strikeouts in the circle while also recording five hits while driving in six runs of her own and Joy Veloz was a perfect 6 for 6 at the plate.
Katya Duvall (Pacifica, Garden Grove)
Pitching nearly a perfect game in the circle, she struck out 11 and walked just one for a no-hitter during their 14-0 win over Tustin.
Raeann Garza (James Logan, Union City)
Returning standout from last year’s CIF North Coast Section Division I title team went 3-for-4 with a double and triple when the Colts avenged their only loss of the season so far with a 6-4 win against Newark Memorial. Garza followed that up with going 2-for-3 with the bat in her next two games. As a pitcher, she began the week 15-1 with a 1.01 ERA.
Bayleigh Heineman (North, Bakersfield)
She banged out four doubles to tie a Central Section record with two other players as she went 4 for 4 at the plate and had five RBIs in a 14-3 win over Foothill of Bakersfield.
Sierra Ipsen (Riverdale)
In a 12-0 victory over Parlier in a West Sequoia League game, Ipsen set two school records by smacking two home runs (one was a grand slam) and collecting seven RBIs.
Marjani Knighten (Sunny Hills, Fullerton)
Her sister Marshaylee hit a home run but she did even better as she hit went a perfect three for three with three home runs to lead the Lancers past Buena Park 13-0.
Bradi Kooyman (Elliot Christian, Lodi)
Some impressive players have come out of this small school in Lodi and this freshman could be one to keep an eye out now and in the years to come as she currently has a batting average of .837 after going 4 for 4 with three doubles and a triple during their 13-1 win over Big Valley Christian of Modesto. On the season, she has eight doubles, 13 triples, two home runs, 45 runs batted in and is 41 for 49 on the year with 11 walks and just one strikeout.
Anissa Lopez (University Prep, Victorville)
Hitting for the cycle, this freshman had five hits including two doubles, a triple and a home run while driving in seven runs in her team’s 26-11 win over Riverside Prep of Oro Grande.
Amanda Lorenz (Moorpark)
One of the top home run hitters in the state this season, this sophomore slugger hit her 16th home run of the season in a 5-1 win over Agoura to extend her home-run hitting streak to five games before having it come to an end.
Sarah Nicks (Grossmont, La Mesa)
The senior catcher tied one of the Grossmont Conference’s toughest single-game records, becoming just the third player to hit three home runs in a game in a 9-8 loss to Valhalla of El Cajon. Nicks also collected seven RBIs in the game against Valhalla, one shy of the conference record. She was the starting catcher in 2011 when the Foothillers upset Poway to capture the CIF San Diego Section Division I title.
Emili Olague (Marina, Huntington Beach)
In a game that seemingly wouldn’t end, her three-run walk off home run gave the Vikings a 6-3 win over Huntington Beach in 14 innings.
Jeane Ortega (McFarland)
This junior saw her streak of getting 12 consecutive hits at bat come to an end against Orange Cove, which is the second longest in Central Section history. McFarland still won the game 14-4.
Alyssa Palomino (Mission Viejo)
Continuing her attack on Lauren Chamberlain’s Orange County record for home runs in a season, Palomino hit her 16th home run on the year as the Diablos defeated Dana Hills 8-1. She now trails Chamberlain’s mark that she set back in 2010 by one.
Jackie Rojas (Lindsay)
Rojas had a memorable day at the plate by getting four hits, including a three-run double and a three-run triple, that helped her produce a school record of eight RBIs in a 31-1 win over Strathmore.
Alyssa Stockton (Delhi)
Reportedly the state strikeout leader with 292 punch outs so far this season, she struck out 15 last week in a 8-1 win over Ripon Christian. Earlier this season, this sophomore hurler struck out 19 against Millennium of Tracy.
Brianna Tautalafua (Carson)
Swinging an especially powerful bat lately, Tautalafua had another multi-home run game last week as she homered twice and drove in five runs as the Colts defeated Gardena 26-0. After not hitting a home run the first 11 games of the season, this sophomore has slugged 13 home runs in her last 12 games and had five games hitting at least two home runs in a game, including a three-homer, eight-RBI outing during a 18-2 win over Narbonne. Brianna is the younger sister of two-time all-state Carson player Darian Tautalafua, who is now playing at Long Beach State.
Mark Tennis contributed to this report.
Paul Muyskens is an assistant editor of CalHiSports.com. He can be reached at Paul_Muyskens@yahoo.com. He also tweets from events on our Twitter account: @CalHiSports
