It was Taco Tuesday at the Crespi snack bar. Fans could munch on carne asada as the Southern California Regional baseball playoffs began under a cloudy sky in Encino.
In the Division II opener, the host Celts fell behind 3-0 to City Section Open Division runner-up Carson, then rallied for an 11-4 victory.
Ethan Kodama and Isaiah Magdaleno each contributed two-run singles and Chris Arce had a two-run double for Crespi, seeded No. 1 in the eight-team tournament. The Celts will host Santee Santana on Thursday in the semifinals.
Dylan Mares drove in three runs for Carson.
Calabasas 3, Birmingham 1: Jordan Kingston threw a complete game and Nate Castellon hit a home run to lead Calabasas in a Division 2 opener that eliminated City Section Open Division champion Birmingham.
South Hills 2, Bakersfield Centennial 1: Steven Jimenez threw four scoreless innings and Marcos Rosales had an RBI double in the first inning to lead South Hills in a Division II opener.
Santa Margarita 4, Carlsbad 3: Trailing 3-2 going into the bottom of the seventh inning, the Eagles loaded the bases with none out, tied it on a fielder’s choice and won it on Drew Rutter’s walk-off single to advance in Division I. Santa Margarita will host Rancho Bernardo on Thursday. Rancho Bernardo defeated Corona 8-3.
La Costa Canyon 6, Sherman Oaks Notre Dame 4: The Knights’ pitching, so good all season, didn’t hold up in the first two innings in a Division I road loss.
Chula Vista Eastlake 2, Orange Lutheran 1: Jeremiah Vargas hit a walk-off home run in the bottom of the seventh inning for a Division I victory.
Anaheim Canyon 3, Sylmar 0: J.P. Sova threw the shutout in a Division III opener for top-seeded Canyon. Freshman Alex Martinez struck out four in 5 1/3 innings for Sylmar.
Westlake 4, Palisades 0: Andrew Habermann threw the shutout for Westlake, allowing two hits. Nate Johnson had two hits and two RBIs.
Softball
Oaks Christian 10, Moorpark 2: Rylee McCoy and I’lovea Brittingham had home runs while Terrianna Kelley contributed a two-run double and an RBI single for the Lions’ Division I victory. They will play host to Rancho Bernardo on Thursday.
