One thing about the physical appearance of El Capitan junior second baseman Sheldon Gabriels is he does not have the look of a power hitter.
And, at 6-foot-2, 154 pounds, that would seem to be an accurate observation. No question, to the unknowing pitcher’s eye the wiry Gabriels hardly poses a threat.
Wrong.
The rangy right-handed swinger is batting at a .479 clip (46-for-96) with 10 home runs and 36 RBI. He also has 13 doubles and 10 stolen bases. Talk about a guy who could slip through the cracks. Heck, veteran El Capitan coach Steve Vickery nearly cut Gabriels while drawing up his final roster.
"I’m not sure he got a hit in all of winter ball," Vickery told the San Diego Union-Tribune. "But we made a few adjustments and he turned his whole game around."
In his last two CIF-SDS playoff games for El Capitan (24-7), Gabriels has collected seven hits in nine at-bats, including three doubles and two home runs. He also scored five runs and drove in four. Gabriels credits Vaqueros assistant coach Ralph Nasif for straightening out his swing.
"Instead of wrapping the bat around my shoulder, I now bring the bat closer to my body," Gabriels said.
Thus, the El Capitan coaches are convinced that Gabriels’ breakout year is not by coincidence.
"When he gets his pitch he doesn’t miss it," Vickery said. "When he sees the pitch coming he pushes the bat off his shoulder and makes contact."
Early this season, Gabriels broke loose for three circuit blasts in El Capitan’s 12-2 romp over Libertyville (Ill.) in the Big League Dugout National Tournament in Scottsdale (Ariz.).
By slugging three home runs against the Wildcats from Illinois, Gabriels tied an El Capitan record set by all-time San Diego CIF career long-ball leader Chris Walston (2002 versus Mount Miguel) and since matched by teammate Tyrone Wiggins in a 29-8 rout of Mission Bay this year.
SOFTBALL: Senior warrior carries El Camino
Naomi Amu completed her high school career with a week to remember. At the pinnacle of her performance was a complete-game, three-hit shutout with five strikeouts and no walks in a 1-0 eight-inning victory over Torrey Pines in the CIF-San Diego section championship game.
Earlier in the Division I tournament, the senior pitcher threw a five-inning no-hitter with four strikeouts and went 2 for 4 with a double, two runs scored and one RBI in a 14-0 victory over Mira Mesa. Amu pitched a complete-game five-hitter with seven strikeouts and drove in the winning run with a walk-off double in the bottom of the seventh inning of a 3-2 victory over Rancho Bernardo in the second round.
Sundevils’ trio leads Mt. Carmel to fourth straight section title
Mt. Carmel (San Diego) (29-3), ranked No. 1 in the CIF-SDS, knocked off Santee West Hills 4-2 to capture its fourth consecutive section title after having never won one in its 33-year history.
Amazing was the word of choice for Mt. Carmel shortstop Kellie Fox, who along with second baseman Ashley Romano and center fielder Alix Johnson have been members of all four championship teams.
"It’s an amazing feeling," said Fox, who was 3 for 4 and flawless in the field. "I never thought it was going to happen, but it did. It was kind of cool – winning as a freshman, and repeating that four times is an amazing honor."
Santee Santana’s Grable sets doubles record
It was double or nothing for Santee Santana junior Amanda Grable, who created one CIF-SDS record and just missed another. Her three doubles against Spring Valley Mount Miguel tied both the school and Grossmont Conference record, falling one shy of the section mark of four. The three two-baggers, however, added up to a section record of 20, breaking a 19-year old mark.
TRACK: Torrey Pines
’ Billmeyer on record pace in the 1,600
Torrey Pines junior Alli Billmeyer ran the fastest high school 1,600 meters in the nation this season, and the second-fastest in CIF-SDS history, with a time of 4:45.06. Billmeyer, who posted her impressive mark in the section finals at Mt. Carmel, advances to the State Track and Field Championships on Friday and Saturday in Clovis.
The CIF-SDS record of 4:42.77 was established by Grossmont High
’s Darcy Arreola 25 years ago.
Other top performances
— University City hasn’t been all that flashy this softball season. But the Centurions posted their second straight CIF-SDS championship as junior Amanda Hansen pitched a two-hit shutout with six strikeouts in edging favored Santee Santana 1-0 in the title game.
— Westview pitcher Carter Prows, a senior right-hander out of Westview, tossed 2 2/3 scoreless innings of relief to earn a save in the Wolverines’ 4-3 CIF-SDS win over Mission Hills and followed that by spinning a two-hit shutout over Scripps Ranch in an elimination playoff game.
— Senior Iesha Iwobi of Oceanside won the triple jump (38 feet, 5 inches), placed second in the long jump (18-5 1/2) and second in the 100 hurdles (14.77) at the CIF-SDS finals, qualifying for the state meet in all three events.
— Faith Koria of Santee West Hills set a Grossmont Conference record with 41 stolen bases.
— Torrey Pines senior outfielder Zack Zehner was 4 for 4 with four RBI and two home runs, including a walk-off blast in a 6-4 CIF-SDS elimination-game victory over Hilltop.
— Inserted into the starting lineup due to injury, senior right fielder Armondo Rodriguez of La Mesa Helix went 3 for 4 with two doubles and three RBI as the Highlanders rocked Ramona 8-3.
— El Centro Southwest High senior Sofie Dukes accomplished something few Imperial Valley track and field athletes do during their high school career. She won the discus event at the CIF-SDS finals with a toss of 135 feet, 7 inches to become the only desert athlete to qualify for the state meet.
Coming attractions
San Diego's four divisional baseball championship games are Saturday at San Diego State
’s Tony Gwynn Stadium. Play begins at 10 a.m. with the Division IV final. The Division I title game is at 7 p.m. preceded by the Division II (4 p.m.) and Division III (1 p.m.) contests. One giant missing from the action is La Costa Canyon (26-6), which was knocked out of the double-elimination tournament with back-to-back losses to Otay Ranch, 10-3, and Bonita Vista, 5-4. The Mavericks were ranked No. 1 in the section the majority of the season.
Dickens dealings
Ejections during regular-season baseball games are one thing. Giving players and/or coaches the boot in playoff games is another.
Of course, there is a fine line whether umpires should absorb a bit of guff or provide participants with an early exit. Postseason play should oblige umpires to tolerate a little more heat.
This is not to say players or coaches should press the envelope when pleading their cause to the men (or women) in blue. And not that that they should take abuse, but for the most part umpires tend to be a little more lenient in postseason activity.
Viewing the situation from my 42 years experience, the veteran umpires clearly allow chipping by players and coaches to bounce off their chest a little more than normal in playoff games. Case in point was the Lakeside El Capitan-University City playoff game. More than once the Centurions catcher decided what was a third strike and quickly started an around-the-horn relay. He was wrong every time.
"I think he did it about five times," said El Capitan coach Steve Vickery. "I think if there had been an umpire with less experience than the veteran who was behind the plate, that kid would have been gone."
In a playoff game matching Point Loma and Westview, a bang-bang collision at the plate resulted in a pushing match between the Wolverines runner and the Pointers catcher. The play was so close that the plate umpire delayed his call, making sure that the catcher held onto the throw from the Point Loma right fielder. That didn
’t sit well with the Westview runner, who knew he was out and pushed the Point Loma catcher, who in turn took a swipe at the enemy runner.
Both combatants were ejected. Although Westview was hurt most by the call, considering the Wolverines were still alive in the playoffs and Point Loma was eliminated, the umpire had no choice. Naturally, neither coach thought his player should have been ejected.
This time, however, the umpire made the right call without a doubt.
