Just one game went in the books for the Escalon ‘A’ varsity summer baseball team this week while the JV ‘B’ team played in one final tournament.

For the varsity, they earned a 5-3 win at Ripon Christian.

“Everybody got in and we looked sharp,” said head coach Greg Largent.

It was also a situation where the hitters got a little extra practice in the finale, as RC brought in a college-bound pitcher who is coming off Tommy John surgery.

“He threw against 10 batters,” Largent said of getting to see the older opponent.

Escalon’s pitching corps is shaping up nicely for next season, added Largent, with Ty Harris, Noah Rast, Zack Hearn, Bryce McPherrin and Clay Evans all getting in some work this summer. They should give the Cougars much more flexibility on the mound for the 2020 campaign.

Offensively against Ripon Christian, Rast wrapped out a double that broke a tie and Evan Bava also had a timely hit.

“It was a nice way to close the season,” Largent said of getting past the Knights.

The ‘A’ team compiled an 8-4-1 mark in 13 games this summer.

Meanwhile, a tournament at Modesto High School was on the schedule for the JV boys this past week and they had a tough go of it, dropping all four contests they played.

“We were in a couple of them,” said head coach Ken Baptista. “We were actually down 7-0 in the first inning to Johansen but there was a lot of good fight in us and we ended up losing it, 10-7.”

After the shaky start, Mark Valente came in to pitch and kept it close, giving the JV boys a chance to get back in the contest.

“We fought back and at least made it a game,” Baptista added.

Other losses during the week came to Modesto High School and Pitman, while the team was leading in their second game of the week against Johansen but couldn’t hang on for the win.

“Our pitchers did fine, threw strikes, but our defense needs to make plays,” Baptista said. “We have a lot of potential arms and I believe we have some good talent.”