SUMMER NEWS

LANCERS SUMMER 2006

DANIEL RENKEN SIGNS WITH CSUF:  Daniel Renken signed a letter of intent with Division 1 power, Cal. State, Fullerton.  Daniel pitched for two different All Star teams during the summer, and will pitch for the Angels Scout team during the fall.

ANDREW JARVI NAMED ALL STAR:  Andrew Jarvi played well in the So Cal Cup during the summer and was named one of four Orange County team players to the All Star Team.  Aaron Gates and Gerrit Cole also played for the Orange County team.

JONATHAN KLINE AND DANIEL GRAY NAMED TO ALL STAR TEAMS.  Jonathan Kline was named to the All Star team of the Grand Junction, Colorado Triple Crown Tournament in July.  Daniel Gray attended the University of Arizona baseball camp in July and was selected to its All Star team as one of the top players in the camp.

Taylor Krick and Justin Hebenstreit, 2006 graduates, played for the North team in the annual Orange County North-South All Star game at Glover Stadium in Anaheim in June.  Taylor led off the second inning with a home run over the left-center field fence.  Justin played in left field while Taylor started the game and played several innings at first base.  Congratulations to Taylor and Justin, two fine representatives of Lutheran High School.

FRESHMAN TRYOUTS:   Freshmen tryouts were held from July 10 - 14, 2006 at El Modena Park in Orange.  By all accounts, the incoming freshman class will be a strong one.  If you are a freshman interested in playing baseball at Orange Lutheran, contact Coach Grahovac:  (714) 998-5151 Ext 659 mike.grahovac@lhsoc.org

SO CAL BULLS:  This 18 and under team had six top Lancers from the 2006 varsity:  Jonathan Kline, Jimmy Sandford, Justin Lambert, Brett Wallach, Daniel Gray, and Andrew Jarvi.  Mark Sandford helped with the coaching of the team, which includes players from Esperanza, Mater Dei, El Modena, Villa Park and other high schools.  The Bulls played in the tough twelve-team South Coast Baseball League.  Most of the opponents were composed of high school graduates and community college players, but the Bulls, all of whom will be juniors or seniors next year, more than held their own.  Check out the scores at South Coast Connie Mack Baseball League. 

TROMBLY CUBS:  This 16 and under team included three Lancers from the 2006 Varsity and JV teams:  Aaron Gates, Pierce Bily, and James Munoz, all of whom will be juniors in 2006-07.  Randy Gates was one of the coaches.  The Cubs completed Mickey Mantle League play with an undefeated 16-0 record, and also swept the Fourth of July Mickey Mantle World Series Qualifying Tournament.  They reached the championship game of the Mickey Mantle World Series in McKinney, Texas, in the end finishing as the runner-up. 

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA BULLDOGS CHAMPS IN OMAHA:  Dee Kline took an excellent team to Omaha, Nebraska for the Triple Crown Baseball tournament from June 21-24, 2006.  The participating Lancers were Daniel Gray, Jonathan Kline, Justin Lambert, Jimmy Sandford, and Brett Wallach.  Check Dee Kline's review of the tournament at the bottom of this page.  The Bulldogs swept seven games in four days to claim the tournament championship.  Congratulations to our five Lancers and to coach Dee Kline.  In July, the Bulldogs won a weekend tournament at Marina High school before competing in the Triple Crown tournament (wood bat) in Grand Junction, Colorado, in late July.  The Bulldogs finished with a 3-3 record.  This team will reunite for several tournaments in the fall.

TROMBLY BULLDOGS:  Coach Grahovac coached this 18 and under Connie Mack team in the Orange County Connie Mack league.  The only current Lancer on the squad was Gerrit Cole, but 2006 alumnus Ryan Hall also roamed the outfield for Coach Grahovac.

MICKEY MANTLE LEAGUE:  Coaches Hugaert and Thome coached a 15 and under team that included some incoming freshmen as well as some who played on the freshmen team in 2006.

EL DORADO/ESPERANZA LEAGUE:  An Orange Lutheran team primarily consisting of last year's freshmen participated in this league.  Guy Hugaert and Anthony Kline coached these younger players.

VARSITY SUMMER LEAGUE:   The varsity Orange Lutheran team was coached by Coach Teuben and Lancer alumni, Ryan Williams and Bobby Wooldridge.

DEE KLINE'S SUMMARY OF SC BULLDOG CHAMPIONSHIP IN OMAHA:  The Southern California Bulldogs won the 36 team Triple Crown National Championship in Omaha the week of June 20-25 by going undefeated at 7-0. The tournament opened on Wednesday, June 21, with the Bulldogs defeating the Frozen Ropes Blue Sox from Dallas, Texas 7-1. Their second victory of the day came against the Springfield Flame from Illinois 7-0 and gave the Bulldogs the #1 seed throughout the remainder of the tournament. On Thursday morning the Bulldogs defeated American National West Eagles from St. Louis 9-5. Friday morning brought a 12-3 victory over the Triple Crown Renegades from Fort Collins, Co. and from there all remaining teams were undefeated. The quarterfinals on Friday afternoon seated the Bulldogs against the Houston Astros Scout Team from Las Vegas. After trailing early, the Bulldogs rallied for a 9-3 lead and held on for a 9-8 victory. Saturday brought rain and a 3 hour delay. When the skies cleared, the Bulldogs defeated the Houston Slam 5-0 in the semi-finals and later that evening defeated the South Carolina Braves 7-3 to capture the national title.

The Bulldogs were comprised of 5 players from Orange Lutheran, 1 from Villa Park, Canyon, El Dorado & Tabuco Hills, 3 from Mission Viejo and 4 from Esperanza. Not only were the Lancers well represented but our 5 players contributed significantly to the team's success. Daniel Gray (5-15, 5 RBI), Jonathan Kline (10-19, 9 RBI & 2 Saves), Brett Wallach (3-9, 2 RBI & 2 innings pitched), Jimmy Sandford (5-7, 5 RBI & 3 innings pitched), and Justin Lambert (0-5, complete game 3 hit shutout in semifinal game).

Dee Kline, coach of the Bulldogs summed up the week this way. "It was very gratifying to see all 16 players come together, and it showed in the way we played! We received quality innings from all our pitchers, and our defense was simply outstanding all week long. Although we hit .335 as a team, the most impressive stat was the number of 2-out clutch hits we produced."

It was a great week of baseball. Not only playing and winning the title, but on Wednesday evening, the team was treated to a tailgate party at Rosenblatt Stadium followed by the CA State Fullerton/North Carolina & Rice/Oregon State College World Series games.

Next up for the Bulldogs will be the Triple Crown Wood Bat World Series in Grand Junction, July 24-31.