In a matchup of rivals, SLO High tops AG baseball in 3-1 defensive battle. Playoffs ahead
With runners on second and third, up by two, San Luis Obispo High pitcher Noah Clausen was closing in on 90 pitches through 6 2/3 innings, and needed to get just one more out.
Clausen, a 6-foot-2 senior, threw a curve ball that dipped just under the bat of an Arroyo Grande hitter and the celebration was on.
Clausen chested bumped with a teammate and the Tigers (15-9, 10-8) enjoyed a 3-1 victory on their home field in front of packed stands with several former SLO High players on hand.
Arroyo Grande (19-10, 11-7) beat SLO on Wednesday 8-2 at Taylor Field, and the Tigers flipped the script on Thursday.
The Eagles finished second in Mountain League and SLO High took third, with Righetti earning the top spot.
“It’s just fun because it’s senior night and the tension is already high, and the stakes don’t get much higher than that, playing AG on senior night,” Clausen said. “There’s no better feeling than a win against AG in front of all the older players that came back, and our family and friends.”
In a defensive game, the Tigers manufactured their runs, getting a double from shortstop Bo Victor, who stole third base and scored on a passed ball.
SLO’s second run came after Clausen walked and Hogan Benson smacked a single to right, advancing Clausen to third, and then Alex Naran had the sacrifice fly RBI.
The third run came on an infield hit by catcher Ayden Kim.
“It was really nice to end the season on a positive note,” Kim said. “We’re ready to go to playoffs.”
How SLO won
Clausen’s only strikeout of the game was the last hitter he faced.
“They’re a good team and they hit balls hard and when our defense can make plays, we can beat anyone and that’s what happened today,” Clausen said.
Victor said that “we all played our hearts out for each other because we knew this could be our last chance on this field.”
Victor said his double came on a changeup that was down and in “that I just stayed with” and drove to left.
“(Arroyo Grande) were great competitors that we’ve played against our whole lives,” Victor said. “It’s fun to beat them.”
Last year, SLO High won two out of three against the Eagles and this year AG won the series, with SLO taking the last game.
“They played good baseball, clean baseball and competed,” said Tigers Coach Josh Miller. “If you do that, you give yourself a chance. ...Noah is super consistent and will always give you a quality outing. Even when he doesn’t have his best stuff, he’ll grind it out and always give you his best effort. He put it all together tonight.”
Both teams don’t know yet who they’ll face in CIF-Central Section postseason action, but they’re looking forward to the challenge.
“The season has been a really good experience,” said Arroyo Grande junior Brandon Kaplan. “It’s a really great group of teammates and it has been really fun. ...We don’t know until Saturday who we will play.”
Kaplan said that the Eagles pitching is “usually very good and on point” and the hitting is led by junior first baseman Ryan Tayman, who has committed to play baseball at Cal Berkeley.
For Arroyo Grande, Kayden Tynes struck out five hitters Thursday, giving up two earned runs on five hits in six innings thrown.
“Tayman really stands out for AG and Niko Ikenoyama is really solid too,” Miller said. “AG has some of the biggest boppers (on the Central Coast). Josiah Cabreros is a really tough out. He’s really competitive and runs well.”
This story was originally published May 12, 2022 at 9:11 PM.
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