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Sonoma baseball boys nip Novato

Getting out of the gate for the 2013 season with three straight solid wins can bode well for the future success of the Sonoma Valley High School varsity baseball boys.

But the way Sonoma finished off its most recent victory Friday afternoon on a nonleague road game showed that it’s still early in the season, mistakes will be made and that there’s more work to be done to become a well-executing and productive team.

After forging a 4-0 third-inning lead over Novato, the visiting Dragons were unable to cross the plate again, ending up with 14 stranded base-runners in the game and having their advantage cut in half with two innings left.

But Sonoma held off the attacking Hornets for a 4-2 victory behind solid pitching from junior Devon Graff, who threw five innings and earned the win in his first varsity start, and standout senior southpaw, Brennan Cole, who picked up the save with two strong innings.

Also leading the Dragons were junior Dan Deely’s three-for-four; senior Richie Nunez’s two-for-four, including a triple, RBI and run scored; senior Jaxon Strong’s two-for-four and an RBI; senior Jonah Son’s two-for-four; juniors James Hess’ and Miles Hagin’s single and one run each; and junior Vinnie Albano’s run.

The Dragon baseball boys host nonleague Terra Linda at 3:30 p.m. today at Arnold Field.

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Getting their nonconference preseason action into full swing, Sonoma’s varsity softball girls played three games in three days, including a double-header against two different foes.

Last Thursday, the Lady Dragons posted a rousing road win by routing Hercules 22-7 behind winning pitcher senior Jordan Samson, junior Amber Rose’s three-run home run, junior Michelle Stovall’s two-run homer, and seniors Riley Ellis-Reis’ and Ashley Vail’s triple each.

On Saturday, the Sonoma girls hosted a double-header at the high school field, and after dropping a 9-1 decision to East Bay power Pinole Valley in the morning, they played Middletown in the afternoon, results not known at presstime.

Complete results from the games will appear in this Friday’s, March 8, I-T. The Lady Dragons will also host nonleague Drake at 4 p.m. this Friday on the high school field.