Mustangs use Eagles

COSTA MESA — Each time Gabe Sanchez walked to the plate the previous four games, he tried settling in.

But Sanchez dug out more dirt than he’s used to, finding himself in a hole.

He said he thought too much.

The leadoff hitter just never did what he’s required to do on the baseball field for Costa Mesa High. He reached base via a hit only once in 15 plate appearances.

Dropped to the No. 6 spot in the batting order Tuesday, Sanchez said he finally felt comfortable.

“I just went up there and did it,” he said. “Just doing that boosted my confidence.”

Sanchez’s approach helped him and the Mustangs break out of funks. To the senior, the timing was perfect.

Sanchez hit his first home run, a two-run shot, and also doubled as Costa Mesa beat cross-town rival Estancia, 11-3, in the Orange Coast League opener for both programs.

A much-needed victory for the Mustangs (4-5), who snapped a five-game losing streak. How did they celebrate at home? By sprinting back and forth 10 times from the left-field line to where the second base bag is.

Sanchez understood why, even after the solid outing by starting pitcher Andrew Millian (1-1). The senior picked up the victory by striking out five, allowing five hits and two earned runs in five innings. His only mistake was giving up a solo home run to Estancia senior Ryan Redding.

But that wasn’t the reason Costa Mesa ran.

“We ran because just one of our guys didn’t slide. That’s like a mandatory thing with our coach [Jim Kiefer]. You have to slide into second base,” said Sanchez, a left fielder. “We have to give it our all throughout the seven innings. We didn’t do that. That’s the key to winning.”

For most of the game, Costa Mesa proved what it took to convincingly beat Estancia (3-5). Solid pitching and defense, and taking advantage of four errors with timely hitting, Sanchez’s homer and sophomore second baseman Brian Waldron’s first career homer, a two-run laser to right field in the fourth inning.

Leading up to the big game, Kiefer downplayed the significance of opening league against the Eagles, saying “we’ll let them worry about” what’s at stake. Maybe with good reason, as Estancia last season won three of the four games, taking the series and the Paul Troxel Trophy for the first time since 2001.

Sanchez remembers the Eagles ringing the trophy’s bell. But he rang theirs with his bat in the bottom of the third inning by hitting an opposite field home run to left, giving Costa Mesa a 5-1 lead.

Estancia Coach Matt Sorensen said it never should have happened, Sanchez’s at-bat.

With two outs and a runner on first, Redding (1-1) appeared to be out of the inning when senior Luke Boulger hit a sure out in deep center field. But the center fielder dropped it, appearing to lose it in the sun, allowing the Mustangs to go ahead, 3-1, as junior Nick Pederson came around to score on the error.

“I never asked him what happened,” said Sorensen of his center fielder, adding that he didn’t see the play. “I put my head down. He was parked under it. I was talking about the pitch selection with [pitching] coach [Dan] Ellis. I couldn’t believe it. It should’ve been the third out. That was the story of the day.”

Sanchez came up next and made things worse for the Eagles. He saw an outside pitch letter high and went with it.

“Right when I hit it I knew [it was gone],” said Sanchez, who homered three times last season, “because it felt really, really good off the bat.”

It felt so natural that Sanchez didn’t have to think about it.

Orange Coast League

Costa Mesa 11, Estancia 3

SCORE BY INNINGS

Redding, McClanahan (5) and Gonzalez; Millian, Boulger (6) and Hirsch. W – Millian, 1-1. L – Redding, 1-1. 2B – Carlyle (E), Molina (CM), Pederson (CM). HR – Redding (E), Sanchez (CM), Waldron (CM).

DAVID CARRILLO PEÑALOZA may be reached at (714) 966-4612 or at [email protected].