Second season
CIF-SS Division I baseball playoffs have arrived
By Stephen Dorman sdorman@theacorn.com

JANN HENDRY/Acorn Newspapers GOLDEN OPPORTUNITY- Westlake High senior center fielder Cutter Dykstra has accomplished a lot during his four years on the Warrior varsity baseball team. Today, however, Dykstra will play in his first CIF-SS postseason game as WHS travels to Hart of Newhall. First pitch is set for 3:15 p.m.

Four area teams took different routes but ended up at the same place- the CIF-Southern Section Division I baseball playoffs.

Westlake High won only three of its final 11 Marmonte League games, the most important victory being last Friday's postseason play-in game triumph over Moorpark.

"Whether we got in at the 11th hour or we made reservations as early as Simi Valley and Thousand Oaks and Royal did, we just look at it as, 'We're in,'" Westlake head coach Zach Miller said prior to Monday's practice.

"Were we playing our best baseball late? No. But that's old news now because it's a new season, a one-game situation where any one of these 32 teams can be beaten by anybody."

Thousand Oaks, a backtoback Marmonte League champion, was victorious in 11 of 12 games to end the regular season- 10 of which were Marmonte wins. The Lancers' late-season surge followed a 1-3 start in league play.

JANN HENDRY/Acorn Newspapers TAKING RESPONSIBILITY- Westlake High shortstop Shane Kroker says the team's seniors must step up in the postseason.

"Our goal last year was to win CIF, and we came pretty close," said Thousand Oaks senior first baseman Tom Hocutt, the Lancers' hottest hitter in the second half of the year following an inseason adjustment to his batting stance.

"Hopefully this year we can lock it down and get the championship we want."

Simi Valley (20-8), co-owners of the Marmonte title along with TOHS, was extremely consistent all year, having suffered backtoback losses on only two occasions during a three-day period in the St. Paul Easter Tournament.

Simi Valley scored a leagueleading 207 runs.

Royal, the Marmonte's thirdplace team, had its ups and downs on offense but still managed to compile 19 victories behind the league's stingiest pitching staff.

Different routes, same destination, one identical goal: to walk out of Dodger Stadium on May 30 with the CIF winners' plaque in their possession.

"Records really don't matter now," Miller said. "It's about where you're at with your play that counts."

As always, the CIFSS Division I field is stacked with highquality ballclubs.

The division's top overall seed, Los Alamitos (24-3), is ranked No. 1 in the state by CalHiSports.com. Lutheran/Orange (21-5), the second overall seed, is No. 8 in the nation, according to Baseball America.

Not that any of these numbers matter much to the Marmonte's foursome, whose coaches have repeatedly said the league's rugged regular-season schedule has every team primed for a title run.

"Our league compared to any of the other leagues, the competition is not even close," Thousand Oaks head coach Frank Mutz said at Monday's practice.

As the playoffs get underway today at 3:15 p.m., Westlake's game at Hart of Newhall (21-6) looms as one of the afternoon's most intriguing matchups.

The Warriors finished 15-13 overall and are the Marmonte's fourth seed. Despite fielding senior standouts such as Cutter Dykstra, Shane Kroker and Graham Johnson, Westlake's roster is devoid of any postseason experience, sans the coaching staff.

Hart won the Foothill League championship, but shouldn't feel overly confident facing Westlake. Of Hart's six losses on the season, four came to Marmonte teams, including a pair of setbacks to Simi Valley in addition to onerun defeats to both Thousand Oaks and Newbury Park.

Dykstra and Kroker both said Hart is likely to start 6foot5 senior lefthander Mike Montgomery on the mound, opposite Johnson. Montgomery and Dykstra played together on the same team during last summer's Area Code Games in Long Beach.

"Montgomery's going to be bringing that really good fastball, and we've got to jump all over it," Dykstra said.

Added Kroker: "He's low 90s- dirty with a good curveball."

Hart's other starting option is highly touted junior right-hander Trevor Bauer, who led the Indians with a .908 ERA and 101 strikeouts in 61 2/3 innings.

Miller is well-prepared for his squad to face Montgomery, Bauer or both, and the coach believes his players will be on top of their games, too.

"I like conflict, and I like a challenge," Miller said. "And this is definitely an uphill conflict.

"Their guy is 6-5 and he's closer (to the plate) than most. But our guy (Johnson) is 6-6 throwing it up there. . . . Now it's time to have some fun, because this is where we wanted to be. Now it's exciting."

Thousand Oaks (19-9) is at home against Millikan, the thirdplace team from the Moore League.

According to Coach Mutz, Lancer senior right-handed pitcher Chad Smith, a USC commit, will get the starting nod against Millikan.

Although Thousand Oaks was outstanding during the second half of the year, the Lancers enter the postseason with concerns in center field, where senior Alex Birgel is questionable with a sore hamstring.

If Birgel, the team's cleanup hitter, misses time, catcher Jett Bandy (.394 average, nine HRs, 26 RBI), designated hitter Ty Odle (.333 average, three HRs) and Hocutt (.345 average, 24 RBI) must continue to abuse opposing pitchers.

"We just need to carry our momentum from the end of the season into the playoffs," Hocutt said.

In other Division I action today, Simi Valley is at home against Vista del Lago, while Royal travels to Canyon of Anaheim.