Another great San Diego High team?  Or a very good San Diego team that had punished mostly mediocre opponents?

The Cavemen, 23-1 and one of the favorites for a Southern Section championship, were eliminated in the quarterfinals of the playoffs at Long Beach Poly, a team with a 20-3 record but had not participated in the playoffs since 1934.

The Cavers’ exit, after 17 straight wins, signaled the end to a season, in which four other San Diego squads were ushered out of the playoffs in the first round.

There were many outstanding baseball players in San Diego County, but apparently not enough competition for the legendary local power.

The loss to Poly, which was eliminated in the next round, was hugely disappointing but coach Les Cassie could look forward to the 1959 campaign, as at least five members of his starting lineup, including Iva Tucker, Sam Edwards, Ezell Singleton, Paul Runge, and Willie McCloud, would return to try again the following year.

3/31/58

Eight of nine City Prep League entries advanced on the first day of the eighth Lions Tournament at Navy Field and other venues.

–Mission Bay defeated Inglewood, 3-1, breaking a tie in the eighth inning when Jerry Dinsmore doubled home Andy Cribbs, who had singled.  Cribbs held the Sentinels to three hits.

–Lincoln beat Manhattan Beach Mira Costa, 1-0, on five-hit pitching by Nelson Kahn. Louie Hughley scored on a squeeze play in the fifth inning for the only run.

–Mount Miguel’s P.D. (Pete) Jernigan struck out nine and had two hits.  Jernigan also walked 19 batters and hurled three wild pitches, but San Diego needed three runs in the seventh inning to put away the Matadors, 12-9.

Hoover dropped a 1-0 decision to Hawthorne for the only loss by a CPL team.

4/1/58

Rain wiped out the entire Lions Club program and forced canceled of the rest of the tournament.

4/8/58

Ezell Singleton walked 13 and hit a batter but allowed only four hits and San Diego moved into second place in the CPL with a 7-1 win over Mission Bay.

—Sweetwater led Kearny, 13-0, after three innings and went on to a 19-1 victory.
4/9/58

Sammy Owens’ single in the fifth inning was the only hit allowed by Gene Fleming in Point Loma’s 4-0 victory, which was the Pointers’ fourth against no losses in league play.

4/10/58

St. Augustine’s George Luna hit two home runs, but Crawford’s Buddy Hunter doubled in two runs in the extra, eighth inning and Crawford won the nonleague contest, 9-8.

—Grossmont, 4-4 in practice games and starting one senior, three juniors, four sophomores, and one freshman, opened Metropolitan League play at home with a 5-3 win over Chula Vista.

Foothillers starter Larry Shuck and reliever John Andreas stranded 11 Spartans base runners.

Andreas came on in the ninth inning when the Spartans loaded the bases with two outs and struck out Bill Foley.

—Tom Dennison was 4 for 4 and Helix stopped El Cajon Valley (8-3) in another opener.  Ron Palermo homered for the Highlanders and scored the winning run on a fielder’s choice in the ninth inning.

4/11/58

Point Loma’s 7-2 win at Mission Bay kept the Pointers in first place with a 5-0 record in the CPL and dealt the early, front-running Buccaneers a third straight loss.

John Rebelo kept the Bucs in check on six hits and Larry Willette helped break a 1-1 deadlock in the sixth inning when Willette’s lead-off double was followed by a series of seemingly “I’ve-Got-It-No-You-Take-It” responses by the hosts.

A bunt by Point Loma’s Ray Hermans rolled fair for a hit.  Billy Fontana walked to load the bases.  Jim Bradford walked and Roger Soares dribbled another base hit down the third base line.  Don Smallwood executed a squeeze bunt for a run and pitcher Bill McCormick balked. Terry Love’s sacrifice fly scored Soares with a fifth run and 6-1 lead.

—Iva Tucker gave up a second-inning single to Bill Helming and San Diego scored in every inning but the seventh, including 10 in the fourth, and buried La Jolla, 22-0.

4/14/58

Point Loma went to 6-0 in the CPL and won its 10th game in a row, overpowering youthful Crawford, 8-1, on the Pointers’ diamond as John Rebelo, Gene Fleming, and Billy Fontana allowed two hits.

Fontana had three hits and Ray Hermans and Larry Willette two each.

4/15/58

Point Loma beat La Jolla, 7-2, and San Diego kept pace, overcoming a 4-0 Hoover lead to win, 7-4, propelled by Willie McCloud’s grand slam home run and clinched on run-scoring singles by Ezell Singleton and Paul Runge.

–John Wible’s two-hitter bested Fred Olmsted in a 2-0 duel between pitchers who also were basketball stars, Wible for Helix and Olmsted for Chula Vista.

–Sammy Owens tripled and Tom Goddard pitched St. Augustine to a 4-0 win over Kearny.

–Home runs by Bobby Jordan and Roger Miller led Sweetwater to an 8-5 win over El Cajon Valley, which got home runs from Bill Christianson and Larry Hancock.

4/16/58

Dick Carey led off the game with a home run and Bill Lewin also homered, but Lincoln had to go 10 innings to beat Kearny, 4-3, when Komets pitcher Bob Jesse walked in the winning run.

4/18/58

Ron Palermo’s two-run home run in the sixth inning was the decisive blow in Helix’ 4-2 win over guest Sweetwater, giving coach Dick Gorrie’s Metropolitan League defending champions a 3-0 loop record.

—El Cajon Valley knocked Grossmont out of a share of first place tie with Helix, 6-4, at Grossmont.

John Solomon came on in the second inning for the Braves and kept the Foothillers at a distance for the last seven-plus innings, a stint that included working out of bases-loaded jams in the second and fourth.

4/22/58

San Diego coach Les Cassie surprised when he bypassed right hander Ezell Singleton for lefthander Iva Tucker for the starting pitcher assignment against Point Loma.

Tucker gave up a three-run home run to Billy Fontana that scored Larry Willette and Ray Hermans in the third inning.

At that point the Cavers led, 4-3, and they went on to a 9-3 win to tie their hosts for first place in the CPL.

Paul Runge’s triple with the bases loaded wrapped the victory and Tucker went the distance, giving up four hits and hitting safely twice in two times at bat.

–Jerry Dinsmore hit two home runs and drove in four to back the no-hit pitching of Andy Cribbs as Mission Bay defeated Crawford, 12-0.

–Nelson Kahn struck out seven of the first nine batters he faced and Lincoln shut out Hoover, 8-0.

–St. Augustine’s Fred Najera had a no-hitter into the sixth inning and then gave up three hits but still pitched a 4-0 victory Sweetwater.

4/25/58

San Diego took over first place in the CPL, as Point Loma was idle and falling a half-game behind.

The Cavers, behind Iva Tucker’s grand slam home run, a three-run shot by John Frabotta, and two-hit pitching by Ezell Singleton, shut out Lincoln, 10-0.

–Bill Lucas and Pete Jernigan hit home runs and Mount Miguel rose up from the Metropolitan League cellar to whip Helix, 13-5.  The losing Highlanders fell into a first-place tie in the Metro with Sweetwater.

4/28/58

Sweetwater improved to 4-1 and took a half-game lead in the Metropolitan loop behind Bob Jordan’s four-hitter which blanked Chula Vista, 4-0.

5/1/58

The sixteen-game City Prep League schedule was down to five and San Diego and Point Loma were tied with 10-1 records.

—Point Loma drew even with the idle Cavemen with a 3-2 victory over Kearny.

—Grossmont moved into a tie for first place with Sweetwater, each at 4-2, when Phil Groce went all the way for a 13-inning, 1-0 win over Chula Vista.

Sophomore Fred Olmsted hurled 12 2/3 innings for the Spartans, relieved by Dave Petersen.

5/2/58

San Diego was alone in first place again after an 11-2 win at Crawford.

—Mar Vista scored a run in the 13^th inning to win at Vista, 2-1.

5/6/58

The day would come when first-year Crawford was a power, but those days seemed far off after the Colts took a 22-0 shellacking from visiting Point Loma.

There was no 11-run mercy rule in effect and Pointers bats made maximum use of 11 hits.  Larry Willette, Billy Fontana, and Ted Faris hit home runs and John Rebello cuffed the Colts on two hits.

–Iva Tucker pitched a two-hitter and San Diego profited from 16 bases on balls in an 8-0 win over St. Augustine.

Three walks loaded the bases in the fifth inning and Sam Edwards followed with a triple.  Another walk later in the inning preceded a two-run double by John Hutchinson.

–Helix’ Bill Whalen shutout Chula Vista on six hits, 4-0.

–Grossmont and Sweetwater stayed tied for first in the Metropolitan League, the Foothillers defeating Mount Miguel, 12-9, and the Red Devils topping El Cajon Valley, 8-4.

5/8/58

Harold Bell’s one-hit pitching and pair of singles was enough or Fallbrook to defeat San Dieguito, 6-3, in the Avocado League.

5/9/58

Billy Fontana had three singles and a double and his Point Loma teammates bunted safely six times in an 8-2 win over St. Augustine.

San Diego moved closer to the City Prep League championship, 6-4 over Mission Bay despite Buccaneers coach Ernie Beck’s pitching Andy Cribbs and Dave McCormick in alternate innings.

The Cavers’ Sam Edwards had four hits, including a double and triple.

5/13/58

San Diego clinched the City Prep League championship with a 14-0 win over La Jolla, a winless-in-league squad the Cavemen had roughed up, 26-0, in the first round.

—Point Loma dropped an eight-inning, 2-1 decision to Mission Bay and was mathematically eliminated.

The Pointers scored in the last of the seventh inning to tie but the Bucs punched over a run in the top of the eighth.

–Oceanside bombed Carlsbad, 22-2, and remained a game ahead of Escondido in the Avocado League. A makeup game with San Dieguito was forfeited, improving Oceanside’s record to 11-3.

–Grossmont earned a tie for the Metropolitan loop crown with a 6-4 win over Sweetwater.

STANDINGS

CITY PREP LEAGUE

TEAM	WON	LOST	PCT.	GAMES BEHIND LEADER
San Diego	15	1	.938	—
Point Loma	13	3	.813	2
Mission Bay	10	6	.625	5
Hoover	9	7	.563	6
St. Augustine	8	8	.500	7
Crawford	7	9	.438	8
Lincoln	6	10	.375	9
Kearny	4	12	.250	11
La Jolla	0	16	.000	15

METROPOLITAN LEAGUE

TEAM	WON	LOST	PCT.	GBL
Grossmont	8	2	.800	—
Helix	6	4	.600	2
Sweetwater	6	4	.600	2
Mount Miguel	5	5	.500	3
Chula Vista	3	7	.300	5
El Cajon Valley	2	8	.200	6

AVOCADO LEAGUE

TEAM	WON	LOST	PCT.	GBL
Oceanside	12	2	.857	—
Escondido	11	3	.786	1
Mar Vista	10	4	.714	2
Vista	7	7	.500	5
Coronado	6	8	.429	6
Fallbrook	4	10	.286	8
San Dieguito	3	11	.214	9
Carlsbad	2	12	.157	10

5/19/58

SOUTHERN SECTION PLAYOFFS

A scheduled Central Group playoff between Helix and Sweetwater at Chula Vista to determine the Metropolitan League’s No. 2 team was canceled when the CIF placed both teams in the Southern Section playoffs.

MAJOR DIVISION

FIRST ROUND

5/20/58

San Diego 9, @Newport Beach Newport Harbor 3.

The Tartars were a perplexing opponent.  They lost their first 10 games, including two in the Sunset League, and then won 10 in a row.

Lefthander Iva Tucker won his 10^th game of the season against no defeats as the Cavemen, trailing, 2-0, slammed six runs across the plate in the third inning and three in the fourth.

John Frabotta walked with two out in the third, followed by Sam Edwards’ single, Ezell Singleton’s double, walks to Henry Gardner and Paul Runge, and another single by Willie McCloud.

Tucker gave up eight hits and walked four and struck out seven.

Point Loma 0, Anaheim 5, @Anaheim La Palma Park.

Two Colonists pitchers combined to stop the Pointers with a no-hitter.

Helix 1, @Ontario Chaffey 9.

Larry Maxie, the Southern Section player of the year in 1957 who would earn the honor again, struck out 17 and held the Highlanders to three hits.

Grossmont 1, Colton 4, @Riverside.

The Foothillers clung to a 1-0 lead until the Yellowjackets’ John Doty hit a grand slam home run in the eighth inning.

Sweetwater 2, @Long Beach St. Anthony 16.

The host Saints raked 20 hits and improved their record to 20-0.

SOUTHERN GROUP

Oceanside 8, @Garden Grove Rancho Alamitos 0.

The Pirates outhit the first-year Pocos, 10-3,and were scheduled to play El  Centro Central in the next round.

SECOND ROUND

San Diego 11, Long Beach St. Anthony 9, @Beeson Field.

The Saints (21-1) scored three runs on one hit in the first inning and two more in the second before the Cavemen unloaded with seven runs in the second on the Marine Corps Recruit Depot diamond.

Willie McCloud started the San Diego rally with a home run over the left-centerfield wall with two outs in the second inning.

John Frabotta followed McCloud by reaching first base on an error, then Archie Walker singled, Augie Bregante singled, Iva Tucker walked, Sam Edwards singled, and Ezell Singleton homered.

Tucker took to the mound in the fifth inning and starter Singleton moved to centerfield and made what writer Jim Mulligan described as “three heart-stopping catches”.

Singleton’s last was a diving stab of a line drive by future St. Augustine athlete Al Roman.  Singleton then fired to second to double up Rom Casaga and end the game.

The Saints out hit the Cavers, 12-6.

5/27/58

San Diego 1, Long Beach Poly 5, @Long Beach Blair Field.

Jeff King allowed a run on a wild pitch in the first inning and then shut the door on the Cavemen, giving up four hits as the Jackrabbits (21-3) shot down the Cavers’ 19-game winning streak and brought an end to a 23-2 season.

Poly, in the postseason for the first time since 1934, handed Iva Tucker his first loss after 11 victories.

Another outstanding San Diego High team was eliminated in the Southern California playoffs and followed a trend of other Cavers teams generally also coming up short in football and basketball.

Coach Les Cassie, who guided the 1952 team to an astounding 35-2 record and its lone Southern California title in the decade, retired after this season and would return to Hoover, his alma mater, as vice principal.

Cassie’s record since 1951, when he succeeded Mike Morrow, was 221-33 and a stunning, .870 winning percentage.

This Cavemen compiled a 25-4 record this season and they were 73-9 since a talented group of sophomores arrived in 1957.

The five, three-year regulars, with batting averages this year in parenthesis: pitcher-outfielder Iva Tucker (.300), first baseman Sam Edwards (.391), catcher Paul Runge (.300), second baseman-pitcher Ezell Singleton (.468), and centerfielder Willie McCloud (.352).

The lineup also included leftfielder H.D. Murphy (.293), infielder John Frabotta (.302), third baseman Steve Simon (.294), and rightfielder Sam Cowan (.308).

Singleton posted a 10-1 record and 1.45 earned-run average.  Iva Tucker and Larry Kramer each pitched a no-hitter.

Singleton was most-valuable player of the ninth annual Lions Tournament, in which the Cavemen defeated El Centro Central, 7-2; Sweetwater, 7-0; Escondido, 6-3, and Mount Miguel, 22-2, for their sixth championship.

3/30/59

Ezell Singleton struck out 17 batters, allowed four hits, and San Diego almost routinely whipped St. Augustine, 16-1, for its ninth consecutive win and Singleton’s fifth without a loss.

Willie McCloud hit his third home run in the last three games and John Frabotta,  also homered.  Iva Tucker and Sam Edwards added three singles apiece as part of San Diego’s 19-hit attack.

—Joe Cisterna’s three-hit pitching was the difference in Lincoln’s 3-1 win over Kearny.

—Billy Fontana was 5-for-5 and Point Loma beat Crawford, 14-1, and Hoover scored 10 runs in the last two innings for a 13-10 victory over Mission Bay.

—Fred Olmsted hit a home run and pitched Chula Vista to a 5-2 win over Helix.

—Mount Miguel’s Jeff Cox gave up 10 hits but struck out 13 and hung in for a 9-8 win over Sweetwater.

—Three errors betrayed Coronado pitcher Craig Callender, who dropped a 2-0 decision to Oceanside’s Joe Astorga.

–San Dieguito rampaged for 16 hits in a 19-0 win over Carlsbad and Mar Vista capitalized on 10 Fallbrook errors in a 16-3 win.

4/1/59

Mike Smith drove in three runs and Ronnie Riech pitched Clairemont to a 6-2 win over Grossmont.

4/3/59

St. Augustine a loser in four of its last five games, surprised Point Loma, 3-1, to knock the Pointers out of a first-place tie with Hoover and San Diego in the City Prep League.

Tom Goddard pitched the victory for the Saints, who separated from the Pointers on a single, squeeze bunt, and an error in the fifth inning.

–Ezell Singleton’s three-run home run in the seventh inning was insurance in San Diego’s 6-1 win over Mission Bay.  Larry Kramer hurled a four-hitter for the Cavemen.

—Jeff Cox had four hits and Pete Jernigan homered and pitched Mount Miguel to a 7-1 win over Chula Vista.

—Dan Reed hit a three-run homer in a four-run third inning and Grossmont scored four more runs in the seventh to beat Sweetwater, 9-6.

4/6/59

Larry Kramer gave up four hits, Sam Edwards drove in five runs, and Ezell Singleton homered in San Diego’s 11-0 victory over La Jolla.

—First-year Clairemont made it five wins in six games by outlasting Hoover, 8-7.

—Pitcher Mike Jauregui had three hits and drove in three runs as Point Loma beat Mission Bay, 9-0.

4/10/59

Gary (Slats) Maloy pitched a no-hitter but three walks and a error denied Slats of a perfect game in a 7-1 Crawford win over Clairemont.

Norm Marr backed Maloy with a grand slam home run and Buddy Hunter added a solo shot.

—Frank Kamfonik of Point Loma edged La Jolla’s Dave Newton, 2-0, in a battle in which each pitcher allowed four hits.

–San Diego routed Hoover, 19-0, and took a 40-20 lead in all-time games against its arch rival. The Cavemen’s romp represented their third highest total of runs versus Hoover, topped only by a 21-3 win in 1949 and 20-3 victory in 1952.

4/14/59

Escondido took a one-game lead in the Metropolitan League as Jim Gabbard hurled a 9-2 win over Sweetwater that combined with Mount Miguel’s 12-4 win over previous frontrunner Grossmont.

–Harold Peterson hit a grand- slam home run and Willie McCloud and H.D. murphy added roundtrippers in San Diego’s 15-1 win over Clairemont.

4/17/59

San Diego took a two-game CPL lead with its 14^th win in a row as Ezell Singleton reversed an earlier loss to Point Loma with a 2-1 victory.

—Bobby Graham and Don Young each hit home runs and Crawford moved into third place in the CPL with a 5-4 win over Mission Bay.

4/21/59

Fred Olmsted homered and pitched Chula Vista back into first place in the Metropolitan League lead with a two-hitter that stopped Escondido, 3-1.

–San Diego won its 15th game in a row, 14-5 over Lincoln.  Angel Sanchez hit a grand-slam homer for the Hornets that made the defeat seem more digestible.

4/24/59

Sam Edwards had five hits in six trips, including a home run and double, and drove in nine as San Diego bombarded Kearny, 22-0.  Paul Runge drove in three runs and Steve Simon homered for the Cavers.  Ezell Singleton and Iva Tucker combined on a one-hit pitching performance.

–Oceanside made it eight wins in nine games and held its Avocado League lead with an 8-7 win over Coronado.

4/28/59

A four-run 10^th inning and 6-2 win over Chula Vista elevated Mount Miguel back into a first-place tie in the Metropolitan League with the Spartans.

Big hit in the Matadors’ inning was Jerry Lipscomb’s triple with winning pitcher Pete Jernigan on base.

5/1/58

Steve Simon and Ezell Singleton each doubled in a run and Iva Tucker, fully recovered from a broken finger, hurled a no-hitter as San Diego defeated St. Augustine, 4-0.

5/5/59

Three El Cajon Valley pitchers could not stop the onslaught.

Grossmont overwhelmed the Braves, 33-10, with 29 hits, led by the 6-for-8 by Danny Reed, whose day included a grand slam home run, four singles, and nine runs batted in.

Grossmont’s Joe Sewall was 5 for 5 with two doubles, a triple, and five RBI. Almost lost in the stats were three doubles in six trips by Danny Selness and eight errors by the Braves.

The offensive explosion, probably heard at the top of nearby Mt. Helix, allowed coach Art Preston’s team to maintain a first-place tie with Chula Vista in the Metropolitan League.

–Chula Vista lefthander Fred Olmsted won a 2-1 duel from visiting Sweetwater’s Jess Molina.  The Red Devils took a 1-0 lead in the top of the seventh but the Spartans scored two in the bottom of the inning.

–Willie McCloud hit a grand-slam home run and Steve Simon homered, tripled, and doubled to bring in five runs as San Diego topped Mission Bay, 14-4, despite the Bucs ending a pitching streak of 25 scoreless innings by Cavers pitchers.

–Ramona’s Neal Walters struck out 19 and no-hit Mountain Empire, 4-0.

–Fallbrook’s Jim Lira and San Dieguito’s Bill Bruns traded one-hit pitching performances, but Bruns was a 5-0 winner.

5/8/59

Larry Shuck kept Mount Miguel at a distance until Grossmont scored a run in the top of the 11^th inning and went all the way in a 1-0 victory.  Shuck twice worked his way out of jams that saw the Matadors retired after runners reached second and third  bases with no outs in two innings.
“I’ve never seen him hum the ball the way he did in the late innings,” said Foothillers coach Art Preston.

Grossmont pitchers have gone the distance in all but one of 21 games, Preston said. The coach had given Neil MacClellan a rest in the third inning after Grossmont had scored 17 runs en route to the 33-10 rout of El Cajon Valley.

H.D. Murphy hit two home runs and Ezell Singleton and Steve Cowan added one each as San Diego clouted La Jolla, 15-4, for its 20^th consecutive victory, behind the pitching of Iva Tucker and Larry Kramer.

5/12/59

Scorebook line-score observers had to take a second or third look when Grossmont took a one-game lead in the Metro League with one game to play in a 9-6 win over visiting Chula Vista.

A published line score revealed that Foothillers pitcher Neil MacClellan started and was relieved by Larry Shuck in the eighth inning, when the Spartans were erupting for four runs.

MacClellan stayed in the game at another position and returned to the mound in the ninth inning.  Shuck also moved to another position and then relieved MacClellan a second time and closed out the game in a scoreless ninth inning.

–Ramona’s Don Romine followed Neal Walters’ gem of seven days earlier with a no-hitter in a 10-0 win over Army-Navy.

–Ezell Singleton was 4 for 4, with three singles and a double and pitched San Diego to a 10-3 win over Hoover.

5/15/59

What in the world of surprising results was this?

Clairemont beat San Diego High in the final regular -season game.

The fledgling program, which opened its doors in September, 1958, with a large segment of students from Mission Bay and Kearny enrollment areas and with no seniors, stunned the Cavemen, 1-0, and put an end to their 20-game winning streak.

Several good players apparently were in that Kearny-Mission Bay mix.  Under coach Ernie Beck the Chieftains tied for third with Hoover, each with a 12-6 record, and were 19-12 overall.

John Barger’s squeeze bunt in the third inning scored Stan Zimny, who had tripled.  George Lyons stopped the Cavemen on two hits, working out of trouble in the first, second, fifth, and sixth innings.

Barger also caught Paul Runge’s 400-foot drive to centerfield and then doubled Ezell Singleton at second base to end the game.

Despite the loss, San Diego’s second in 18 league games, the Cavers won the CPL championship by two games over Point Loma.

–Helix finished third in the Metropolitan League but had a say in Grossmont’s fortunes, rocking the Foothillers, 15-2, and preventing them from an outright title, which they were force to share with Chula Vista, 7-2 winner over Escondido.

STANDINGS

CITY PREP LEAGUE

TEAM	WON-LOSS	Pct.	GB	OVERALL/Pct.
San Diego	16-2	.889	—	24-3, .889
Point Loma	14-4	.778	2	18-5, .783
Hoover	12-6	.667	4	17-10, .625*
Clairemont	12-6	.667	4	19-12, .613
Crawford	11-7	.611	5	14-10, .583
St. Augustine	8-10	.444	8	9-14, .391
Mission Bay	6-12	.333	10	7-16, .304
Lincoln	6-12	.333	10	9-15, .375
Kearny	5-13	.278	11	6-18, .250
La Jolla	0-16	.000	16	1-19, .050

*Hoover had one tie game.

METROPOLITAN LEAGUE

TEAM	WON-LOSS	Pct.	GB	OVERALL/Pct.
Chula Vista	8-4	.667	—	15-7, .682
Grossmont	8-4	.667	—	16-7, .688*
Helix	7-5	.583	1	12-9, .571
Escondido	6-6	.500	2	14-7, .667
Mount Miguel	6-6	.500	2	15-10, .600
El Cajon Valley	6-6	.500	2	7-15, .318
Sweetwater	1-11	.083	7	8-14, .364

*Grossmont had one tie game.

AVOCADO LEAGUE

TEAM	WON-LOSS	Pct.	GB	OVERALL/Pct.
San Dieguito	9-3	.750	—	11-4, .733
Vista	9-3	.750	—	11-6-1, .639
Oceanside	8-3-1	.708	½	12-6-1, .658
Coronado	6-5-1	.541	2 ½	6-9-1, .407
Mar Vista	5-7	.417	4	7-12, .368
Fallbrook	4-7-1	.375	4 ½	5-8-1, .393
Carlsbad	0-12	.000	9	0-16, .000

 

SOUTHERN SECTION PLAYOFFS

San Diego 13, @Grossmont (16-8-1) 5.

The Cavemen literally walked their way to the first-round victory, with first baseman Paul Runge leading the parade.

Runge had a single in six times at bat.

A modest achievement, but Runge drew bases on balls in his other five times at bat, reaching base his first four appearances on a combined 16 consecutive pitches.

Runge drove in four runs, three on bases-loaded walks.

Wild Grossmont pitchers, who issued 19 free passes, contributed to a seemingly interminable, three-hour contest that began before about 500 fans at Grossmont.

Grossmont actually led, 3-2, when the roof fell in.

Two Grossmont errors, Runge’s single, Willie McCloud’s home run, and John Frabotta’s, triple were part of a six-run fifth inning that gave the Cavers a 9-3 lead.

San Diego pitcher Ezell Singleton even walked six batters but struck out 11 and raised his record to 10-0. San Diego needed only eight hits, led by Sam Edwards’ two doubles in five trips.

Point Loma (18-6) 1, @Santa Ana 14.

Jim Bradford homered and doubled for the Pointers, who were competitive, trailing, 3-1, until the Saints, champions of the Sunset League, unloaded for 10 runs in the fifth inning.

Long Beach Poly 2, @Chula Vista (15-8) 0.

Poly pitcher Tommy Sisk worked out of a jam in the sixth-inning when the Spartans loaded the bases with none out and came up empty.

Sisk struck out 13 and allowed three hits.  Chula Vista’s Fred Olmsted gave up only two hits and single runs in the third and fifth innings.

Huntington Beach 1, San Diego (25-4) 0, @Beeson Field.

Bob White, who “pestered San Diego High batters with a whistling fastball,” stroked a run-scoring base hit in the sixth inning and closed out the Cavemen in a second-round playoff game on the Marine Corps Recruit Depot diamond.

The loss also closed the career of coach Led Cassie, who retired from coaching and moved into administration.

Johnny MacDonald of The San Diego Union noted that White denied the Cavemen after they had runners on third base three times and that “excellent, heads-up play by his teammates squelched the impotent Cavers.”

Harley Murray opened the Oilers’ sixth with a single.  Pinch-runner Bob Anderson went to second base on a wild pitch and scored on White’s single with two out.

Tough luck San Diego pitcher Iva Tucker gave up just three hits and struck out 11.