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JV Baseball Boys Fall Short In Tournament Play
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Cameron LoValvo leads off first in Thursday afternoon action against Gregori during Oakdale Tournament play. The JV boys fell in three games during the week. Marg Jackson/The Times
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Notching his first hit of the season in the Oakdale Tournament was Jacob Dugo, who stands ready at the plate here during a game against Gregori. Marg Jackson/The Times

After starting out the Oakdale Tournament with a 16-4 loss to Oakdale on Thursday, the games didn’t get easier for Escalon’s JV baseball boys.

They were shut out in their next two contests, just not able to get the bats going.

Escalon kept the game with Oakdale close through three, said head coach Ken Baptista.

“We took the lead in the top of the third,” he said. “But then the wheels fell off in the fourth.”

Demetrius Teixeira took the loss on the mound and the JV team went through four pitchers in the fourth inning alone.

“We allowed two hits and gave up 12 free batters, our guys just couldn’t throw strikes,” Baptista said. “Our bullpen just let us down and we lost 16-4.”

Cameron LoValvo was a bright spot for the young squad, going 2-for-2 with a pair of doubles and two runs driven in.

“We played Gregori on Thursday afternoon and it was an incredibly hot day,” added Baptista. “I think that played a huge factor.”

Having to double back for a second game in the heat impacted the team but, Baptista said, they also gave themselves some problems.

“We only had three hits,” he said. “We lost 14-0 and we were down 7-0 in the first, they just hit the ball.”

Alex Guevara did make it through four innings and settled in after the seven-run uprising by Gregori in the first.

Jacob Dugo got his first hit of the season in the game and LoValvo also had a couple more hits in that contest.

Friday against Turlock, the JV boys gave up five runs in the first inning, putting themselves in a hole they couldn’t dig out of, said Baptista.

“Giavanni Brunetti settled down after one inning but this time our defense kind of let us down and we just struggled,” the coach said. “Teixeira and Mark Anthony Valente each had two hits, LoValvo had one.”

The game went in the books as a 10-0 loss for the JV Cougars.

“Each game only went five innings and that is four straight games we have been 10-runned,” Baptista pointed out. “We need to right the ship real fast.”

The team was slated to get back into Trans-Valley League play this week and will close out the regular season with a trip to Hilmar on Thursday, May 2.