Chavez Ravine bound

Steve Virgen

His coach called him Corona del Mar High’s “nicely kept secret,” but

by the end of a classic baseball playoff game, the word was out.

Senior substitute catcher Dan Marin-Finn, who had missed a month

because of a biceps injury during the regular season, hit a two-out,

game-winning RBI single, helping lead the Sea Kings to a

heart-stopping, 6-5, come-from-behind victory over host Northwood in

the CIF Southern Section Division IV semifinals Tuesday.

CdM, which last reached the CIF finals and won it in 1999, will

face another Pacific Coast League team in the CIF Division IV title

game. The Sea Kings will take on Tesoro, a 4-1 upset winner over

top-seeded La Quinta, in the championship game at Dodger Stadium

Saturday at 10 a.m.

The third-seeded Sea Kings (24-5), who have won 16 straight and 22

of their last 23, overcame a 3-0, first-inning deficit, and later,

with heroics from Wess Presson, Tyler Lance and Marin-Finn, CdM

rallied with two runs in the seventh.

About half of an overflow crowd of roughly 650 fans cheered loudly

when the Sea Kings went ahead, 6-5, as Tyler Lance scored to give CdM

its first lead of the game. The game was filled with intensity and

included twists an turns. In the end the Sea Kings reveled in

celebration and the Timberwolves (20-11) appeared devastated.

“We were champions of the [Pacific Coast League] and we showed

why,” CdM Coach John Emme said shortly after his post-game speech.

“What an absolutely incredible game. I’m still shaking.”

Northwood pitcher Brian DeLoach held the high-powered Sea Kings

scoreless in innings four through six, but CdM broke through in the

seventh to beat the Timberwolves for the fourth time this season.

With two outs and with Lance on third and Jeritt Thayer on first,

Marin-Finn sent a 1-2 pitch to the gap in right-center field.

Marin-Finn entered the lineup in the sixth and smacked a double. “I’m

so happy just to be back playing with the guys,” said Marin-Finn, who

returned to the team just before the playoffs started. “I couldn’t

ask for anything more than to have coach give me an at-bat. I just

told myself I was going to pull through.”

Said Emme: “He hit .400 for us last year ... He was definitely a

great guy to have in that spot.”

Emme called the victory, “special” and gave credit to the majority

of the players, including pitchers Eric Eadington and Blake Contant.

Eadington, a sophomore left-hander, went 4 2/3 innings, allowing just

one hit. He came on in relief in the first with the Sea Kings down,

3-0, and displayed remarkable poise while striking out the side in

the third.

Contant pitched two scoreless innings, allowing no hits and picked

up the win to improve to 11-2. He will start against Tesoro.

DeLoach was solid against Corona del Mar, scattering 12 hits,

while his defense came up with key plays to stuff the Sea Kings. CdM

left 11 baserunners stranded, including the bases loaded in the

first. DeLoach threw 130 pitches and struck out seven in his

complete-game effort. He entered the seventh having thrown 102

pitches.

“He pitched a great game,” Emme said. “But we know we can hit. It

was just a matter of time before we got that key hit.”

CdM found the hit and also had a strong defense. The Timberwolves

had just three hits, as errors and sacrifice fly balls aided their

cause. Northwood Coach Rob Stuart said his team could not come up

with the big hit with runners in scoring position.

Thayer, the CdM senior shortstop who went 4 for 4 with an RBI and

a run scored, was instrumental in providing momentum for his

teammates with his defense and hitting advice. He kept repeating,

“just put the ball in play.”

“I don’t think I have ever been this pumped for a baseball game,”

said Thayer, who left his feet to snag a line drive to end the first

when Northwood had a runner on third. “I’m very happy.”

In the Sea King seventh, Presson put the ball in play. He led off

with a groundball to third base. He slid to beat the throw, which was

off target, allowing Presson to get on board.

With Presson stealing second, Nik Palchikoff knocked a base hit

past second base and Presson went on to third. Lance sent another

grounder toward third, and Presson took off home. He slid just ahead

of the throw, tying the score, 5-5.

Parker Ferguson and Josh Bradbury had an RBI single in the second.

Lance finished the game with two runs scored and Palchikoff had one.

“That was awesome,” Lance said. “That’s probably the most fun a

baseball game could be.”

*--*

CIF Division IV Semifinal

Corona del Mar 6, Northwood 5

Score by Innings

CdM 022 000 2 -- 6 12 4

N’wood 310 100 0 -- 5 3 2

Maggard, Eadington (1), Contant (7) and

Kelly, Marin-Finn (6); DeLoach and Bonder.

W -- Contant, 11-2. L -- DeLoach, 5-3. 2B

-- Marin-Finn (CdM), Van Lueven (N). 3B --

Kuykendall (N).

*--*