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Sports

Baseball and Softball Season Under Way at San Marino

San Marino baseball struggles out of the gate, while softball's Michelle Floyd is already in top form.

The San Marino baseball team opened its 2011 campaign in the Glendora Tournament last Friday, but was no match for the host Tartans who finished the 2010 season as the 11th ranked team in California. The Titans lost 16-0, but regrouped from their stumbling start to play Ayala much closer on Monday.

The Titans jumped to an early 4-3 lead in the game, but the Bulldogs scored four runs in the fourth inning to pull ahead and eventually beat San Marino 9-6. 

25 runs in the first two games is hardly the start 4th-year coach Mack Paciorek wanted to see out of a pitching staff he expects to be amongst the top in the Rio Hondo League, but hurlers Alex Eaves and Garret Glazier will have another opportunity to prove themselves in Saturday’s tournament finale and in the league opener against South Pasadena next Friday.

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The Titans’ Saturday opponent has yet to be determined, and they will play a non-league game at home against Gladstone next Wednesday.

 The San Marino softball team continued its undefeated play to open the 2011 season with non-league wins against Arroyo, Alhambra and California over the last week. The Titans have made clear their intention is to rely heavily on star pitcher Michelle Floyd, who threw a complete game in all three victories, including an 11-strikeout performance against California.

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“Right now we need her to build up her strength and endurance,” San Marino coach Hilda Valencia said. “We’ll look to other pitchers once league play begins, but I want Michelle to be prepared for when we’ll need her almost every game down the stretch and in playoffs.”

Shortstop Alexis Watanabe has been the offensive sparkplug for San Marino from the leadoff position. Watanabe batted .552 with 21 stolen bases last year and plays an important role for a Titan team that isn’t built to swing for the fences.

“Alexis is doing a great job on the bases and in the field,” Valencia said. “She sets an aggressive tone for our lineup and her fielding allows Michelle to pitch for ground balls.”

After finishing second in the Rio Hondo League last season, the Titans are confident they’ll contend for the league title again this year despite fielding just one senior, Jen Jimenez.

“We’re a young team, but we’re experienced,” Valencia said. “It just means we have a strong foundation for the future.”

Whenever Valencia elects to rest Floyd, she will likely look to sophomore Erin Stenwall as her No. 2 pitcher. Stenwall logged innings on the mound in the opening round of the Lincoln Classic, an extended tournament spanning nearly a month.

Floyd will get another go on Thursday against Harvard-Westlake. The Titans face Canyon next Wednesday and will resume play in the Lincoln Classic the following weekend against Kennedy and Sylmar.

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