Fountain Valley Falls Again

Fountain Valley is again ranked in the top 10 and battling for the Sunset League championship. But it has not been a typical season for the Barons.

The first clue is their record (13-8, 7-3), damaged further by Wednesday’s 10-8 loss to visiting Edison. It was their second loss in three games.

Then there are the injuries that have cost them top starting pitcher Kameron Nielsen and starting outfielder Jason Morris. Nielsen (arm) could be back by Friday; Morris (shoulder) may be lost for the season.

More than anything, however, is a leaky defense that has kept 10th-ranked Fountain Valley from taking control of the league race.

The Chargers (8-12, 3-7), who upset Esperanza Saturday, won Wednesday’s slugfest on Dale Thayer’s leadoff home run in the seventh, breaking an 8-8 tie. Thayer, the third pitcher used by Edison, also won the game in relief.

But the Barons, who fell into a second-place tie with Marina, have some deeper problems with two weeks left in the regular season.

Under Coach Ron La Ruffa, Fountain Valley has been a fundamentally sound defensive team. But that wasn’t the case Wednesday. The first of three errors in the first inning gave Edison a 2-0 lead, and a mental lapse in the second--a failure by starting pitcher Brian Ackerson to cover first on a grounder to the right side--paved the way for three more runs and a 5-0 hole.

“To me that was the key play of the game,� La Ruffa said. “Our pitchers have been stepping up and doing the job, and we don’t play any defense behind them.�

Still, Fountain Valley rallied to take a 7-5 lead with a five-run fifth. Four of the runs came on a grand slam by Ryan Clark off reliever Andrew Rodriguez.

But sophomore-dominated Edison, which will have a difficult time making the playoffs, scored three in the sixth, then won it with two in the seventh.