AMERICAN LEGION PLAYOFFS : Van Nuys Shot Down in 9th by Camarillo

Darren Romano threw out the potential tying run at home plate for the final out of the game to lead Camarillo to a 3-2 victory over Van Nuys-Notre Dame on Friday in the Area 6 American Legion playoffs at Moorpark College.

Camarillo took a 3-1 lead into the bottom of the ninth behind starting pitcher Mike Teron, but Van Nuys-Notre Dame loaded the bases with two out. Brian Woolley then singled sharply up the middle to score Chad Ratliff from third and send Tony Ljubetic roaring toward home from second base.

But Romano’s throw split the plate, allowing catcher Brad Billups to tag out Ljubetic to end the game.

Teron (5-1) pitched a complete game to move Camarillo (21-8) into a 9:30 a.m. game today at Moorpark against West Covina, which defeated Glendale on Friday, 7-5. At 1 p.m., Glendale plays Westlake, which lost to Santa Monica on Friday, 4-2. The winners of today’s games meet at 4:30 p.m., with the winner advancing to play Santa Monica on Sunday for the tournament championship.

Van Nuys-Notre Dame (20-7) has been eliminated from the six-team tournament.

Camarillo scored in the third on a double by Tim Simonsgaard and a single by Teron. Ryan McMullen singled home Gil Valencia to give Camarillo a 2-1 lead in the seventh.

Camarillo stretched its lead to 3-1 with a run in the eighth when Billups walked, moved to second on a sacrifice by Simonsgaard and scored on a single by Jeremy Sumrow.

West Covina (27-12) broke a 5-5 tie in the bottom of the eighth with a two-run rally to defeat Glendale. With two out, West Covina executed a double steal with Mick Ferro scoring from third for a 6-5 lead. Jason Wolak followed with a run-scoring single to drive home Vince Aguilar.