Behind another strong pitching effort from junior MacLean Meyn, the Sonoma Valley High baseball Dragons ran their winning streak to six straight games Tuesday as they shut out El Molino, 3-0.
It’s the second straight shutout the Dragons have recorded, and the third in their six-game Sonoma County League winning streak.
Sonoma put two runs across in the top of the first inning and added another in the third behind five strong innings by Meyn and a two-inning relief stint by senior Thomas Crumly. Meyn scattered four hits, struck out three and walked two while Crumly didn’t give up a hit in walking two and striking out a pair.
At the plate, the Dragons were led by Kyle Garcia’s two-for-three with an RBI; Meyn, sophomore Shane O’Malley, sophomore Ethan Vitale and senior CJ Vitale each chipped in with a hit – O’Malley’s was an RBI double while Meyn also drove in a run.
Coach Don Lyons praised the Dragon defense. “Our defense has really been effective in league play,” he said. “We’ve made one error in six games.”
He said a lot of credit goes to shortstop CJ Vitale and second baseman Kyle Garcia. “They’re leaders in practice, in the clubhouse and in games,” he said.
Lyons said when the team was struggling in non-league play, he used a line from Hall of Fame Coach Bill Walsh that “winners act like winners before they’re winners.”
“We really tried to adhere to that credo and the boys practiced like a winning team even while losing eight of 11 games,” Lyons said.
The win gives the Dragons a 6-0 league record – good for first place in the SCL –and a 9-8 overall record.
As the Dragons prepare for the second half of the SCL season, Lyons said that even though it’s nice to be where they are, the team is not where they want to be - yet.
“I believe we’re in a good place with our league record as a ‘progress report’ but it’s not the final grade,” he said.
The first-place Dragons have a bye today and then travel to Santa Rosa to face Elsie Allen on Tuesday, April 28, before returning home to host defending champion Analy at 7 p.m. on Friday, May 1, at Arnold Field.
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