Newbury Park edges Oak Park in Legion baseball action

By Steve AmesSpecial to the AcornNewbury Park proved its playoff worthiness in American Legion 16th District baseball by turning back visiting Oak Park, 32, on Tuesday evening.

GETTING HORIZONTAL—Oak Park third baseman and 2004 Agoura grad Jonathon Fersht reaches out to snag a ball during a game against Newbury Park on Tuesday. Oak Park fell short, 3-2. The win improved the Panthers to 14-2 and dropped Oak Park to 7-7 just a week and a half before the start of the Legion postseason.

“I like the fact that our guys are playing with some confidence right now,” said Newbury Park head coach Scott Drootin, whose team is comprised of future varsity players. “They’re playing against some older kids. We didn’t want to play down. We wanted to play against good competition.”

Legion’s Southern ‘A’ Division, comprised of teams from Newbury Park, Oak Park, Westlake, Thousand Oaks and Ojai, will send two teams to the playoffs to face two squads from the Northern Division. Newbury Park is in and Oak Park’s chances seem good depending on how they play in the final week of regular season competition.

Sitting in the vistor’s dugout at the Newbury Park field was Tom Duffy, who is co-coach with Barry Newton of the Oak Park team. Duffy said he has coached most of his players since they were 6 and 7 years old.

“It’s kind of their last chance to play together for the rest of their lives probably,” Duffy said. “Everyone on the team has graduated high school.”

Pitcher Jamie Cipriano, who will be a freshman at Cal State Long Beach and is hoping to make the 49ers as a walk-on Dodger disabredshirt the first year, said he’s enjoyed his summer playing for Oak Park.

“We’re very close and that’s why we win most of the time,” Cipriano said. “We’re tenacious.”

Duffy said he’s satisfied with Oak Park’s veteran pitching staff.

“Cipriano has done a good job on the mound (as have) Jerry Wolf, Brian Kernchan, Nick Reitz (and) Jonathan Fersht,” the coach said.

Legion baseball allows for a more relaxed approach to the game, something players and coaches appreciate in the summertime.

“They’re loose. They’re having a good time,” Duffy said. “They’re not afraid to make mistakes. They just go out there and have a good time, giving it all they’ve got.”

In the game against Oak Park, Newbury Park got two runs in the second inning and one more in the third inning. Oak Park was held scoreless until the top of the seventh inning when it put two runs on the board.

Right fielder Brett Fick opened the Panthers’ second inning with a single to left field. Third baseman Anthony Montenegro followed with a double to left. After first baseman Jon De La Torre struck out, shortstop Tim Williams doubled to left to score Fick and Montenegro.

Center fielder Nick Nardoni doubled to left to open the third inning, second baseman Brad Greve reached on a fielder’s choice as Nardoni was out at the plate. Center fielder-pitcher Andrew Lambo doubled to left field and came in on right fielder Fick’s single to left.

With one out in the seventh inning Oak Park center fielder Drew Norton and shortstop Trevor Duffy each reached first base on infield errors and came home on third baseman Fersht’s single to right field.