Baseball: UCLA commits pitch their teams into Division 1 semifinals

It didn’t hurt on Friday in the Southern Section Division 1 quarterfinals to have a UCLA-bound pitcher on the mound.

Santa Margarita relied on senior right-hander Griffin Canning, who struck out 12 and walked none to help lift the Eagles past Norco, 6-2.

Then there was junior left-hander Quentin Longrie of JSerra. He struck out 10 and walked one in JSerra’s 2-0 victory over Edison.

JSerra will face Foothill in Tuesday’s semifinals at Blair Field. Foothill defeated No. 4-seeded Agoura, 6-2. Dylan Doherty had two hits and an RBI. Hudson Hughes threw a complete game, striking out five.

Trabuco Hills will face Santa Margarita in the other semifinal. Trabuco Hills defeated Orange Lutheran, 3-2. Matt Toretto and Matt Majors threw shutout ball in relief. Robbie Biehl had two hits, including an RBI double.

In Division 2, another UCLA commit, Kyle Molnar, a junior pitcher, came through for Aliso Niguel, striking out eight, walking none and allowing five hits in Aliso Niguel’s 3-0 win over top-seeded Great Oak.

La Mirada, the team that lost its coach, Kim Brooks, who was suspended following disclosure of a profanity-laced audio recording directed at his players, continues to try to win Brooks watches from the sideline. La Mirada knocked off Chino Hills, 1-0, behind Blake Wilson, who threw a three-hitter, striking out seven. Temecula Valley defeated Dana Hills, 2-1.

Crescenta Valley was beaten by Placentia Valencia, 8-2. Nick Diaz had two hits for Crescenta Valley.

In Division 3, Christian Moya hit a three-run home run to help Bishop Amat rally for a 5-2 win over Quartz Hill. Nick Valdez had a two-run double. Scott Hurst got the save.

Alex Gironda pitched Santa Monica past Paloma Valley, 7-0. Palm Desert defeated Warren, 7-4. The game was tied, 3-3, going into the seventh. Kyle Kabeary hit a home run.

In Division 4, South Torrance defeated Oaks Christian, 3-1. Kyle Smith pitched Torrance past San Dimas, 1-0.

In Division 6, Sierra Canyon defeated Desert Christian, 5-3. Seth Stone improved to 8-0 and went three for three.