Newport Harbor baseball beats Aquinas with a shutout in Division 2 quarterfinals

NEWPORT BEACH — The Newport Harbor baseball team scored eight runs in the second inning and Keaton Anderson pitched a shutout in an 8-0 win over Aquinas in the CIF-SS Division 2 quarterfinals on Friday at Newport Harbor High.

Anderson allowed just three hits, Gavin Guy hit a bases-clearing double and Grant Horsley blasted a three-run homer as the Sailors advanced to the semifinals.

Newport Harbor (22-9) will be at Ganesha on Tuesday with a trip to the CIF-SS championship game on the line.

Sailors coach Josh Lee, who missed the team’s win over Great Oak in the second round of the playoffs to be with his wife after the birth of their daughter, was all smiles after the game for many reasons.

"You know, I was taking care of my wife, and then looking over scouting reports,” Lee said. “And Keaton was pretty confident with the game plan. He knew we were gonna start with a lot of off-speed. It’s not necessarily the most common thing for him. And it was a great day to have a great day to have your best day. And he did. So, the game plan worked, and he executed it better than we could have even hoped."

Keaton began the game with a five-pitch walk to Aquinas leadoff hitter Carter Hadnot, but he was able to get the next batter Johnny Tena to hit into a 6-4-3 double play. Jacob Bitonti grounded out to short for the third out.

"I felt great, a bit nervous, you know, a big situation,” Anderson said. “But I just had to do my best to give the team more time together."

The Sailors threatened to score in the bottom half of the first inning. Leadoff man Keoni Wun got on base with an infield single and then went from first to third on Ryan Williams' base hit to right-center.

Wun was picked off third base by catcher Maddox Carpentier and then Williams was thrown out at the plate when he tried to score as Henry Mann put the ball in play.

In the second inning, Newport Harbor immediately put pressure on Falcons starting pitcher Hayden Vanderhoof. Grant Horsley was by a pitch and a few batters later, Noah Whitaker brought Horsley home for the game's first run.

The Sailors took advantage of a fielding error and a passed ball by Aquinas to take a 2-0 lead when Cam Hatfield scored.

Vanderhoof was pulled after just 1 2/3 innings. He was replaced by Eli Martinez.

The Sailors immediately feasted on Martinez and his offerings, as Guy hit a double with the bases loaded, driving in three runs to make the score 5-0. Horsley then drilled a three-run homer to make it 8-0.

Lee said his team has a knack for scoring in bunches, especially with two outs, which did in playoff wins over Trabuco Hills and Great Oak.

"I think it’s just, again, it’s that fighter mentality, right?' Lee said. "We had a lot of hits with two strikes. We would get the two strikes. Kids bought into the approach, they turn it into a battle and make pitchers uncomfortable, and that’s how you extend innings with two outs. So they did a great job, again, just really proud to be their coach."

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This story was originally published May 22, 2026 at 8:24 PM.