Tucson High School's Jesse Hill threw the discus 112 feet, 1.25 inches, which was good for fourth-place Wednesday in the Class 5A-I Southern Region championship at Tucson High. After the first day of the two-day competition, the Badgers are in fourth place with eight points, trailing Casa Grande (31), Salpointe (20) and Sierra Vista Buena (17).

Returning from battling the flu, distance runner Steve Magnuson helped Ironwood Ridge High School build a comfortable lead during Wednesday’s first day of the two-day 5A-II Southern Region track and field championship at Tucson High.

Magnuson took the lead in the first lap of the 1,600 meter, never looking back en route to a win in 4 minutes, 35.64 seconds, nearly two seconds ahead of second-place Noah Kenyawani (4:37.44) of Rincon/University.

“The goal there was to qualify . . . for state,” said Magnuson, who has posted much faster times in the event in recent weeks. “I think our team has a really good shot (at winning a 5A Division II state championship). All of us together want to bring home a team title and we’re good all the way around. We’re pretty high momentumwise and ready to roll whenever.”

His win helped Ironwood Ridge build a 15 point lead (42-27) over Rincon.

The Nighthawks’ success Wednesday wasn’t only on the track.

Ironwood Ridge senior Jake Fischer took first place in the shot put with a throw of 51 feet, 2.5 inches, more than 5 feet over teammate Marvin Snodgrass’ second-place toss of 46-1.5. Zach Booker rounded out the top three spots in the event for Ironwood Ridge with a third-place throw of44-6.

The Ironwood Ridge girls team (37 points) leads Mountain View (20.5) and Rincon (18.5), last year’s regional champions.

Rincon’s Tamara Pridgett clocked a 25.19 in the 200 preliminary heats.

One of her competitors in Friday’s finals will be Ironwood Ridge’s Abbey Barbera (25.51), a newcomer to the event.

“I’ve never run the 200 before this year,” said Barbera. “I definitely think about my competition and I’ve known about Tamara. I was a little disappointed that I didn’t get to run against her, but glad I will see her in the finals.”

The Nighthawks claimed titles in the 3,200 when Sarah Miville (11:31.34) finished 10 seconds ahead of teammate Kat Howard (11:41.04).

Defending state high jump champion Lauren Laszczak won the region title at 5 feet, 2 inches.

In the 5A-I Southern Region girls meet, Casa Grande’s Kylee Kieser claimed her second straight regional title in the 3,200.

“I knew I would have some competition,” said Kieser (5:28.74), who defeated Tucson High’s Lucia Hernandez (5:34.64).

“I wanted to win here and have an automatic berth into state next week. I had a feeling she was closing in and I picked it up.”

Sierra Vista Buena (34) leads the girls competition over Salpointe (19), Casa Grande (17) and Tucson High (9).

Casa Grande (31) leads Salpointe (20), Buena (17) and Tucson High (8) in the boys meet.

For more on high school sports, check out the Grammer School sports blog.

Christian Muscarello helped the Catalina Foothills High School baseball team end its drought against Canyon del Oro.

Second-seeded Catalina Foothills topped CDO 15-8 in the Class 4A Sonoran Region title game on Tuesday at Cherry Field.

Muscarello had four RBIs on two doubles and a homer for the Falcons, who won the tournament title for the second straight year.

“It was back and forth,” said Muscarello, who gave his team a 2-0 lead with a home run in the first inning. “We were just able to keep hitting the ball.

The Falcons led 9-8 going into the seventh inning before piling on six runs to put the game away.

“We knew we had to score some insurance runs to put it away,” Muscarello said.

Top-seeded CDO made things tough for Foothills in the fifth, greeting relief pitcher Jeff Coelet with three runs to cut the Falcons’ lead to 8-7.

Ryan Retz – who also tripled and later scored in the third – had a walk and scored on Doug Steele’s double to make it 8-5.

Hayden Cota-Robles belted a two-run homer to cut the lead to one, but Coelet settled down after loading the bases and got the last two batters in the inning to strike out, including Griffin Ronstadt, who chased a 3-2 pitch which was out of the strike zone.

“I just wanted to get it in there and keep my team in the game,” Coelet said. “It was a momentum shift. They’ve beaten us a few times this year, but now we’re on a roll going into state.”

Boys tennis

Palo Verde advanced to the semifinals of the 4A Division II team tournament after shutting out No. 6 Cottonwood Mingus 5-0.

The No. 3-seeded Titans were led by state singles champion Carlos Bermudez, who won his No. 1 singles match 6-0, 6-1. He also teamed with Matthew Berger to win 8-4 in doubles.

Palo Verde will face No. 2 Scottsdale Notre Dame at Glendale’s Paseo Racquet Center at 1:30 p.m. Friday.

Girls tennis

Catalina Foothills controlled its matchup at home against No. 10 Prescott.

The No. 2 Falcons closed out their victory in singles with victories coming from Zaina Sufi and Cari Alcombright to win 5-0.

Sufi and teammate Nooria Sufi won 8-0 in doubles.

Foothills will play No. 6 Phoenix Sunnyslope at the Paseo Racquet Center at 2:30 p.m. Friday.

Boys volleyball

Mountain View took an early lead by winning the first two games against Sunnyside, but had to fight back to claim victory and advance in the 5A Southern Region tournament.

The Mountain Lions defeated the Blue Devils in five games 27-25, 25-16, 20-25, 21-25, 15-8, and will play No. 2 Sierra Vista Buena at 6 p.m. Wednesday at Salpointe.

In 4A competition, No. 3 Marana moved on and will play No. 2 Ironwood Ridge in the Sonoran Region tourney at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday.

In the Kino Region, No. 4 Cienega will play No. 2 Rincon/University at 6 p.m. Wednesday. In the Gila, No. 3 Amphi will play No. 2 Palo Verde at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday.

All the 4A games will be at Palo Verde.

Sunnyside's Ryan Rosthenhausler (left) forces out Tucson High's Jaime Sagarnaga at second base in Wednesday's game at Sunnyside. Tucson High won 7-2.

The No. 7 spot in a batting lineup isn’t always known for offensive production in baseball.

But Wednesday, Tucson High got just that when Kyle Ivanoff, who bats seventh, belted two doubles in his first two at-bats and scored a run to help Tucson High pick up its seventh straight win, 7-2 over host Sunnyside.

“I’m just picking up the ball early and trying to put it in play,” said Ivanoff, who is batting .700 in the Badgers’ win streak, including going 3-for-3 against Sunnyside. “I am not trying to do too much with it.”

He said the recent win streak is a positive sign the team is becoming cohesive at the right time heading into Saturday’s opening-round of the Class 5A Division I playoffs.

“I feel like we are all coming together and playing for Tucson High and not for ourselves anymore,” Ivanoff said. “The one through four guys (in the lineup) do well, but we need someone at the bottom that is going to bring us back up to the top again and get that rally going.”

Trailing 2-1 after four innings, Tucson High (18-9, 5-1 in Class 5A-I Southern Region) scored two runs in each of the final three innings, including a two-run homer by Alan Garcia in the seventh to snap his 0-for-12 slump.

Sunnyside (19-8, 5-1 in the 5A-II Southern Region) took a 2-1 lead in the fourth when catcher Ricardo Mendivil hit his eighth homer of the season.

“I was surprised I hit the home run because I never try to,” the Spanish-speaking Mendivil said through an interpreter. “I just try to get a base hit. I just hit the ball hard and got all of it.”

Freshman Benny Garcia, recently up from JV, led Sunnyside with two hits, a single and a double.

Tucson High, which clinched the 5A-I Southern Region title last week with a win over Salpointe, and Sunnyside, which clinched the 5A-II Southern Region on Tuesday with a win over Mountain View, both play in the opening-round of their respective state tournaments Saturday. Playoff brackets have not yet been released.

For more on high school sports, check out the Grammer School sports blog.

Catalina Foothills' Zaina Sufi helped lead her team to an 8-0 win Tuesday over Lake Havasu in the 4A-I state playoffs.

After missing the 2008 boys tennis state tournament, the Palo Verde boy’s tennis team made a pact this season to not only make state, but advance to the state title match.

Matt Berger made sure the team got off on the right foot Tuesday.

Berger finished his singles match in straight sets, clinching for No. 3 Palo Verde a 5-3 win over No. 14 Amphi in the opening round of the Class 4A Division II boys tennis tournament.

Palo Verde was one of nine southern Arizona teams advancing in Tuesday’s first day of the Class 4A state tournaments.

“It was a good win,” said Berger, who defeated Abisay Rodriguez 6-1, 6-2. “We had played them three times before and we knew what we expected. Our goal is to win the state championship. We knew they had some good players, so we had to come out prepared.”

The No. 1 singles match between Palo Verde star Dominic Bermudez and Amphi’s Alan Barrios was tied 1-1 in the second set when the team competition was clinched. Bermudez, the 2007 4A-II state singles champion, won the first set 6-3.

“I’ve been in a real slump lately,” said Bermudez. “I played decent, but it’s still not good enough to do my thing on the court.

“(Not finishing the match) bugs me a little bit, but it also makes me feel more confident about my team. They can get the job done and that is the first time they got the job done without my help. I think that is a plus.”

Amphi’s Carlos Medina picked up one of his team’s wins with a 6-0, 6-3 win over Arthur Dean. Amphi also won one singles match by forfeit and a doubles match.

Palo Verde will play No. 6 Cottonwood Mingus in the May 5 quarterfinals.

Sahuarita and Douglas also advanced in the boys 4A-II tournament while Sabino and Catalina Foothills each won easily in the 4A-I boys tournament.

Class 4A girls playoffs

At Sahuarita, Catalina’s tennis team was unaware it qualified for the 4A-II state tournament and did not show up for Tuesday’s match at Sahuarita.

The Mustangs, who advance to play No. 5 Gilbert Higley in the May 5 quarterfinals, haven’t played as a team since the April 21 Gila Region tournament (several players competed April 23 and 24 in the Gila Region individual tournament).

“We were prepared to play today,” Sahuarita coach Eduardo Escobedo said. “I don’t think the layoff will affect the team. We’re going to keep practicing these days that we’re off and going to be ready for next week.”

In the 4A-I tournament, Catalina Foothills, Nogales and Canyon del Oro each won their matches Tuesday.

For more on high school sports, check out the Grammer School sports blog.

More than 1,100 bikers race 70 miles; tandem 3 seconds behind winner

Jame Carney of Tucson crosses the finish line to win the 70-mile Tour of the Tucson Mountains race on Sunday with an official time of 2:46.09.

Coming around the final corner, Jame Carney took one last glance to check out his closest opponents.

The brother-sister tandem bike of Dave and Sarah Swanson was right behind him.

“These events are usually won by who gets to the last turn first,” Carney said.

He was right. Carney claimed his second Tour of Tucson Mountains title Sunday, covering the 70-mile event in 2 hours, 46 minutes, 9 seconds – three seconds ahead of the tandem. More than 1,100 bikers participated.

Carney, 40, a longtime pro cyclist who lives in Tucson, and the Swanson tandem broke away from the pack at about the 45-mile mark and worked together to stay away.

“I saw the balloons (near the finish line) and hit the tandem right before the turn and accelerated,” Carney said. “The real race was the race with the Swansons. We had to pull as hard as we could for the last 25 miles.”

Clay Murfet of Tasmania crossed the finish line after the tandem and one second ahead of the lead pack of 70-plus riders. He finished in 2:46:44.

“I knew that coming out of the last left turn it was going to be 150 meters,” said Murfet, who trained with Carney before the race. “I knew I had to be first or second going into the corner. I came in a bit hard and gave everything I had. I had a big gap, so I sat up and just rode across (the finish line).

“The plan was try to get me and Jame or six to 10 (others) in a break, and we kept hitting them and the pack didn’t come down again.

“Once we got to the front, we just relaxed and I wasn’t going to chase. We got one-two, and that was the plan. It worked out perfectly.”

Laura McCaughey (2:46:48), also from Tasmania, was the female winner and 31st overall finisher. Like Murfet, she also trained with Carney.

“It was hectic, but it was good fun,” said McCaughey, a first time participant. “There were some women floating through the pack and we settled around each other all the time. After the first hour or so, the attacks started coming. I thought if I could hang with the main group there, I would do all right.”

Dave and Sarah Swanson worked their way through the pack to hook up with Carney.

“We knew we were the lead tandem when we made the attack off the front,” said Dave Swanson, the captain of the duo. “We were marking wheels and we worked hard to chase (duo Evan Unger/Dwight Nelson) a little bit. We counterattacked and got ahead with Carney about 25 miles from the end.”

David Murray finished the 27-mile race in 1:09:53. Randi Najac was the first women finisher in shorter event at 1:15:09.

Cyclists ride along Ajo Way during Sunday's 70-mile Tour of the Tucson Mountains race. More than 1,100 riders participated in the event.

———

TOP FINISHERS

70 MILES

1. Jame Carney, Tucson 2:46.09

2. David-Sarah Swanson*, Tucson 2:46.12

4. Clay Murfet, Tasmania 2:46.44

5. Jay Koesters, Tucson 2:46.45

6. Jeff Francone, Tucson 2:46.45

* Tandem; counts for two places

27 MILES

1. David Murray, Phoenix 1:09.53

2. Lawrence Knight, Oro Valley 1:09.54

3. Jason Dannettel, Tucson 1:09.54

4. Henry Novell Jr., McAllen, Texas 1:09.55

5. Jose Font, El Paso, Texas 1:10.03

Cienega High School pitcher Alexa Cash carried a no-hit shutout into the seventh inning and struck out 14 Sahuaro hitters in a 7-3 win Friday, essentially securing the Class 4A Kino Region title for the red-hot Bobcats.

Cienega is 21-6 overall and 9-0 in league play. The Bobcats have won 13 straight. Second-place Sahuaro is 20-7 and 7-2 in Kino play.

Cash, who got the final nine outs of the game with strikeouts, said her familiarity with the Cougars, who they’ve played six times in the past two seasons, helped in Friday’s win.

“The coaches and catchers did a good job remembering what they could and couldn’t hit,” said Cash, whose no-hitter was broken up in the seventh by a single to left field by Sahuaro’s Morgan McKeever.

“They have really good hitters and they did a good job seeing the ball and coming through whenever they needed to in the seventh.”

Cienega gave Cash all the run support she needed in the first two innings. After scoring two in the first, the Bobcats added four in the second, chasing Sahuaro starting pitcher Courtney McCoy.

“I was going in saying I need to get it done for the team,” said Cienega’s Brittany Keiser, who finished 4 for 4 and scored three runs. “We used our momentum to keep on pushing today. We had to roll over them early.”

Sahuaro lost 4-3 in 13 innings to Cienega on Wednesday in the continuation of a game that started April 14 but was suspended in the 12th inning because of darkness.

Trailing 7-0 Friday heading into the final inning, Sahuaro began a rally with McKeever’s single and managed to score three runs before Cash shut the door.

“We had some shaky innings, but we did really well battling back,” McKeever said.

Jessica Schneider’s double into the alley scored two and she scored two batters later.

“We just had to come out and play hard,” Schneider said about the strong finish.

“I just wanted to get a hit, that’s what I was thinking about. When you’re down, you can’t fall, you have to pick yourself up and that’s what we did.”

Cienega won its 18th straight home game dating back to last year.

“The girls played really well and we always talk about how we can definitely get it done with the bats,” Bobcats coach Eric Tatham said. “We’re using this as a measuring stick for the state tournament coming up. There are some great teams out there and Sahuaro is one of them.”

Canyon del Oro 17, Catalina Foothills 0 (5 innings): At Foothills, Kenzie Fowler threw a one-hitter and the CDO bats came alive for a 10-run second inning in a 4A Sonoran Region blowout.

Flowing Wells 8, Nogales 0: At Flowing Wells, junior pitcher Danielle Burnette was two outs away from throwing a no-hitter, settling for a one-hit shutout.

High School Sports Editor Geoff Grammer contributed to this article.

Salpointe's Christine Mordaunt, playing in No. 2 singles action, won 6-2, 6-4 Wednesday to help advance the Lancers to Monday's Class 5A Division I semifinals after beating Gilbert Mesquite 5-0 at the Tucson Racquet Club.

Freshman Alex Prassas rallied in the second set of her match against Anthem Boulder Creek High School’s Alyssa Haney on Wednesday, helping No. 4 Ironwood Ridge to a 5-0 win in the Class 5A Division II girls tennis quarterfinals.

Boulder Creek, the 12th seed, was ranked No. 1 in 2008 and eliminated Ironwood Ridge in the semifinals last year, but that was before Prassas was enrolled at the school. “Nobody told me we faced them last year,” said Prassas, who battled back from a 5-4 deficit and won the match on an ace. “It was a long, hard match. . . . I wasn’t expecting (to get the ace) that’s for sure. I just thought about how much I wanted this and how much it meant to the team. I just gave it my all.”

Prassas defeated Haney in straight sets 6-1, 7-5.

For Ironwood Ridge’s No. 1 singles player, Shannon Contreras, her 6-3, 6-2 win Wednesday over Vanessa Green avenged a pair of postseason losses in 2008 – one in the team tournament and one in the individual tournament.

“She played great, but I was able to overcome my mental game and pull through,” said Contreras, who received the top seed for this year’s 5A-II individual state tournament, which begins Friday in Glendale. “I knew I played her before and I try to forget about the past and focus on the present. I noticed her net game was a little weak and I tried to move her up towards the net.”

When Contreras moved Green close to the net, she forced her into several errors that led to Contreras taking a 5-2 lead in the second set. She eventually took the match when Green’s return landed in the net.

Wednesday’s team win means Ironwood Ridge will play No. 1 Phoenix Pinnacle on Monday at Glendale’s Paseo Racquet Center.

“I’m very proud of the way they played,” Ironwood Ridge coach Bill Little said. “I’m very proud of the fact they reach down deeper every time they play. It’s nice to be in the semis, but we want to be in the finals.”

The Ironwood Ridge boys team, the defending 5A-II champion, also won Wednesday, beating No. 9 Rincon/University 5-0.

The Nighthawks advanced after Conor Spiegel won his No. 5 singles match 6-0, 6-2.

No. 1 Ironwood Ridge plays No. 13 Phoenix Pinnacle in the semifinals on Monday.

5A Division I

The No. 4 Salpointe girls team beat No. 5 Gilbert Mesquite 5-0 to advance to the semifinals. Maggie McGeorge won her No. 1 singles match 6-1, 6-0. The Lancers will play No. 1 Phoenix Xavier on Monday at the Paseo Racquet Club at 1:30 p.m.

The No. 5 Salpointe boys won on the road over No. 4 Scottsdale Desert Mountain 5-2. Tyler Comstock and Ezra Auerbach won in doubles 10-1 to seal it. Salpointe plays No. 1 Tempe Corona del Sol on Monday.

For more on high school sports, check out the Grammer School sports blog.

Maggie McGeorge (above) led the Salpointe girls tennis team to an easy 5-0 win over Gilbert Mesquite in the Class 5A Division I quarterfinals Wednesday at the Tucson Racquet Club.

Cholla shortstop Patricia Ruiz Maldonado misses the tag as Catalina Foothills' Elise Samoy-Alvarado slides into second base during Tuesday's game. Catalina Foothills won 4-0.

After working out of a bases loaded jam in the first inning, Catalina Foothills pitcher Erin Krause was given offensive support in the bottom of the inning.

Senior Stefanie Carramusa’s three-run homer over the right field fence off Cholla pitcher Monet Ormsby put the Falcons on their way to a 4-0 win.

“I hit a home run against Ormsby at her place (in a April 8 Cholla win),” Carramusa said. “I wasn’t expecting anything in the zone. I knew everything was going to be (outside) or really inside. She threw me that rise ball high and outside. I somehow got a hold of it and hooked it over the fence.”

Carramusa’s homer was her second in as many games. Her power surge has given Foothills coach Mark Brunenkant something to build his lineup around.

“It was huge for our self-confidence,” Brunenkant said about the first-inning lead. “We knew (Carramusa) was always going to be there (for us). She’s disciplined at the plate and can do a lot of damage.”

Krause settled down after loading the bases in the bottom of the first. Krause got Marissa Gauna to ground out to Carramusa at shortstop to end the threat and Cholla never had another runner advance past second base in the game.

“I thought it went pretty well,” said Krause, who only gave up one hit, to Bianca Haro in the first. “You can’t really expect anything less from (Carramusa) because that is what she does. I felt pretty good (having the lead). We had to come out today with the big win and we did.”

Ormsby, who picked up the win April 8, struck out seven, while giving up six hits.

“They came to win and we didn’t,” said Cholla coach Mario Gastellum.

“Ormsby wasn’t herself today and they just took advantage of her. Overall this season, when we play our best game, we are tough to beat, but it’s hard when the girls don’t bring their best to the table.”

Salpointe's Maggie McGeorge led her team to a 5-0 win over Sierra Vista Buena in the 5A-I Southern Region tennis championship Wednesday at the Tucson Racquet Club.

With an 8-4 doubles win from Kelley Carson and Alex Prassas, the Ironwood Ridge girls tennis team won its second-straight 5A-II Southern Region championship Wednesday, beating Rincon/University 5-3.

“I think every time we play Rincon, it’s exciting and we enjoy their competition,” Nighthawks coach Bill Little said after his team’s win at the Tucson Racquet Club. “I think it’s a very healthy thing we have going on.”

The highlight of the match came at the No. 1 singles spot where Rincon freshman Samantha Lund picked up her first win in three tries against Ironwood Ridge’s Shannon Contreras. The two battled to a third-set tiebreaker before a long Contreras return gave Lund the win, 7-5, 1-6, 12-10.

“It was really challenging, and I just had to put everything I had into it,” Lund said.

Little said the match “was a nail-biter, and it could have gone either way.”

Despite her loss in singles action, Contreras was happy with Wednesday’s results and hopes the team will do well in the state tournament.

“It’s exciting (the back-to-back regional titles) and I hope to continue it,” Contreras said.

Rincon’s loss does not eliminate it from the state tournament. After the match, Rincon held the No. 8 ranking in the state’s Power Ranking system, which determines the top 16 teams for the state tournament.

This is the first Rincon girls tennis team to reach state in 11 years.

Like their female classmates, the Ironwood Ridge boys tennis team repeated as 5A-II Southern Region champs with a win over Rincon on Wednesday.

For coach Ryan Bais’ boys team, it was the fifth straight region title, including three from when the Nighthawks competed in the 4A Sonoran Region.

The defending 5A-II boys state champion cruised to an easy 5-0 win over Rincon.

“It’s really good for our program,” said Ironwood Ridge senior Andrew Vo, who defeated James Steinke 6-1, 6-2.

“I think we came in prepared and really exceeded our expectations.”

5A-I Southern Region

Defending region champion Salpointe crushed upset-minded Sierra Vista Buena 5-0 in the 5A-I Southern Region girls tennis championship.

Salpointe clinched the victory when its first five singles players won their matches by a combined score of 60-1.

“I think we should do really well in state and hopefully we make a run,” Salpointe’s No. 3 singles player, Courtney Amos, said after her 6-0, 6-0 win over Molly Murphy.

Salpointe’s boys team also used a 5-0 win Wednesday for a region title, defeating Casa Grande.

“Everyone played well today,” said Salpointe freshman Matt Dunn, who won his match 6-0, 6-0 over Justin Crockett. “We’re really excited. At the beginning of the year, we weren’t really sure we were going to make it.”

For more on high school sports, check out the Grammer School sports blog.

Canyon del Oro High School baseball player Ryan Retz didn’t let Catalina Foothills’ win streak reach double digits.

Retz hit Tommy West’s first pitch with two outs in the bottom of the ninth for a walk-off double Tuesday night in CDO’s 3-2 win.

Ryan Gerber scored from first on the play to end Foothills’ nine-game winning streak.

“(With) a man on first, I just wanted to hit a gapper and not do too much,” said Retz, who finished 4 for 5 at the plate while pitching eight strong innings.

“Last time (the teams played) it was really close and I knew it was going to be a battle the whole way.”

CDO coach Len Anderson was glad to see Retz at the plate in the tied game.

“He is the type of guy that you want in that situation because he can hit it into the gaps,” Anderson said.

“He’s got ice water in his veins and he’s a guy that loves those big type of situations. He thrives in them and anything he does doesn’t surprise me.”

With one out in the ninth, CDO’s Griffin Ronstadt tripled into right center field. But he was tagged out at home later after Gerber missed a sign.

“I thought the squeeze was on, but it wasn’t,” said Gerber, who reached first on the bunt while Reid Hunter flipped the ball from his glove to catcher Matt Riley to get Ronstadt.

“Apparently, I did it wrong, but it seemed to work out. I saw that he was out and thought, ‘Oh no,’ when I reached first.”

On the mound, Retz threw 99 pitches, including 19 in the eighth. He escaped a bases-loaded jam in the inning by striking out Hunter.

Retz got a no-decision while Vicente Teran picked up the win after pitching the ninth.

After spotting CDO a 2-0 lead in the first inning, Foothills tied the game at 2 in the fifth on Robbie Petrillo’s two-out single.

“That was a good high school baseball game,” Foothills coach Lance Robertson said. “Coach Anderson has a great team.”

Salpointe Catholic High School's Miraya Montiel (right) safely slides to second as Sunnyside's Amanda Spradling is unable to get her out on Friday at Salpointe. The Lancers beat Sunnyside 2-0.

The Salpointe Catholic High School softball team had pink touches to its uniforms Friday in what it hopes becomes an annual tradition.

For the past week, the team has sold raffle tickets and shirts saying “think pink” in hopes of raising awareness for breast cancer.

“I’m happy we did it because it shows we care about breast cancer,” said Salpointe’s Paige Peterson, who picked up the win over Sunnyside 2-0 on Breast Cancer Awareness Day.

“My mom had breast cancer. It’s important and it’s not small, it’s a big thing.”

Peterson’s mother, Paula, was diagnosed with breast cancer when Paige was 4.

“It’s wonderful that the school puts this on,” said Paula Peterson, an 11-year breast cancer survivor. “A lot of these schools are doing this and it’s great to get people out here. We had a great game and earned some money for the cancer society.

“Personally, this runs in my family and I’m going to be teaching (Paige) anything we can do to make kids aware to start checking themselves and doing mammograms and (learn to) take care of yourself because you can survive it.”

Paige had an RBI and struck out seven while allowing only one Sunnyside player to reach third base.

Sunnyside has gone 1-3 in its last four games after a 16-game winning streak to open the season.

“It’s a case where our pitching has done a great job, but our offense has disappeared on us,” coach Pete Palomarez said. “In the last four games, we haven’t generated any offense and that is starting to wear on the team.

For Palomarez, the game had special meaning because he lost his mother to breast cancer.

“When Salpointe asked us if we wanted to be part of this, we jumped at it because we wanted to be part of a good cause.”

” . . . It’s good to see a lot of schools and clubs take part in something like this. It’s something special.”

Salpointe Catholic's Paige Peterson pitches.

Tucson High's Juan Frias gets Santa Barbara (Calif.) San Marcos' Shane Moore out at third base Thursday afternoon at Cherry Field.

Tucson High baseball coach Oscar Romero doesn’t feel his team has reached its peak.

But if the Badgers continue to play like they have recently, their opponents should be on notice.

Tucson, hosting the inaugural Cherry Field Memorial Classic, picked up its third straight win by defeating San Marcos (Calif.) 6-2 in pool play Thursday.

“We can still get so much better,” Romero said. ” . . . Our energy level has to get better all around.

“It has to be where we just don’t wait for big innings; every inning should be a big inning. I think it’s just our mental approach of how we’re coming to the game. The good thing about it is I feel we haven’t arrived yet, but we’re getting there.”

Jake Luna, provided a spark for Tucson, finishing 1 for 3 with a walk and scoring twice.

“In a tournament like this, we’re coming more together as a team,” Luna said. “To be honest, that’s what baseball is about, your brothers next to you.

“We all depend on each other on the field and off.”

After the walk, Juan Frias’ single scored Luna.

In the third, Tucson scored three more runs to go up 5-0.

Luna drove in the first run of the inning with a single to center.

Alan Garcia picked up the win.

“It was a tough game,” said Garcia, who finished with six strikeouts and worked out of a bases-loaded jam in the third inning.

“I was just trying to throw strikes and get ahead in the count. I had a little trouble in the third inning but things went well overall.”

After San Marcos had scored two runs in the third, Shane Wieland walked to load the bases. Garcia got Brandon Atelian to ground out to end the threat.

“This is really good for us,” Romero said of the tournament’s timing. “Some people were scared that it’s too late in the season. I think this can also propel you and solidifies what you need to do right now in the heart of your season.”

Marana's Michael Kivi competes in the long jump during Wednesday's track meet at Palo Verde High School.

Marana High School track and field athlete Michael Kivi is having a big impact on his younger teammates.

Kivi had a strong day Wednesday, winning the triple jump (48 feet, 0 inches) while finishing second in the 200 meters (23.5 second) and third in the 100 (11.46) in a tri-meet against host Palo Verde and Rio Rico.

Marana first-year coach Matt Romanowski has taken notice of Kivi’s passion to compete and hopes it is passed down to the younger members of the team.

“It’s definitely good to have him around,” Romanowski said. “He is one of the senior leaders. It’s really good to have a kid that is very successful and that good of a leader. It really helps to build the foundation with us being so young.”

Kivi helped Marana (83) rout Rio Rico (48) and Palo Verde (42).

Last year, Kivi finished first in the Class 4A Division I state triple jump and this year is focused on repeating as champion.

“We lost a couple of guys off the team from last year, but I don’t feel any pressure,” he said. “I just hope that I perform well in the events that I do.”

He has the second longest triple jump (45-6) in the state at the Class 4A level this season. He trails Peoria’s Kenry Robinson by 3 inches.

“That is the level of excellence the (younger kids) can achieve if they work hard,” Romanowski said. “The younger kids can see what a hard worker is like. . . . To look at your name in the rankings as one of the top two in the state is pretty exciting.

“He is an all-around athlete. He can step into most things and he does well at it.”

Kivi, who played football for Marana, received a scholarship for that sport to Division II Henderson State University in Arkadelphia, Ark.

“Track helps me stay in shape and I’ll get faster,” Kivi said. “I want to pass on (to the younger teammates) the tradition of hard work and doing well in everything you do.”

Marana (70) topped Palo Verde (50) and Rio Rico (37) in the girls meet Wednesday.