Winner of 10 of its last 11 games, including two intensely fought wins last week over previously undefeated Santa Monica to end the regular season, the Culver City High School varsity baseball team earned a seventh seed in the 41-team CIF playoff draw. The Centaurs will meet the winner of a wild card game between Eastside (Golden League, third place, 13-7) and Segerstrom (Golden West League, at large, 17-8), Friday, 3:15 p.m., at Culver High. Winner takes on the victor of California (Del Rio, first place, 18-7) and Paramount (San Gabriel Valley, third place, 17-9), next week.
Outscoring their opposition 97-11 in the last 11 games, the Ocean League champion Centaurs (10-0 in league, 19-8 overall) have been shutting down Ocean League teams with overpowering pitching and timely hitting.
Culver City slipped past the Vikings, 7-6, last Tuesday, and topped Santa Monica, 1-0, last Thursday. Santa Monica dropped to 8-2 in league, 14-15 overall.
Darian Sylvester slapped a two-out single in the bottom of the seventh inning to push across pinch runner Pablo Saucedo from third base to give the Centaurs the 1-0 win last Thursday at Culver High.
Saucedo made a running catch deep in right field, and catcher Jon Kocker made a good throw to second baseman Sylvester to ring up a stealing runner to keep the game scoreless in the top half of the seventh inning.
Freshman pitcher Jay Sterner earned the complete-game victory
“I’m proud of what these young men have accomplished. But, this is just the beginning. Now we get ready for the playoffs,” said Centaur Coach Rick Prieto.
Culver City lost in the semifinals of the CIF Southern Section playoffs last year at Culver High.