The Davis High junior varsity girls wrapped up their 2013 soccer season, improving their final record to 19-1-1 with a convincing 3-0 road win over Elk Grove last week.

The Blue Devils controlled play from the start, but did not find the back of the net until midway through the first half when Hannah Thompson delivered a ball across the face of the goal and Kate Bosco closed fast from her wing position to hammer it inside the far post.

Claire Buhlman came close with a long free kick that forced a keeper save and delivered two beautiful corner kicks, but neither were finished and DHS settled for 1-0 halftime advantage.

Thompson made it 2-0 early in the second half when she beat two defenders at the top of the box and sent in a low shot that the keeper could not handle.

The final goal was delivered by Elsa Iverson, who finished in clinical fashion off a great feed from Alexis Olmedo, who herself created several second-half scoring opportunities.

The Devil back line of Buhlman, Jodie Stroeve, Megan Klisiewicz, Melissa Teuber, Kasey Carlson and Jordon Callahan made it a quiet day for goalkeepers Chris Roeckl-Navazio and Mari O’Brien, who rarely touched the ball.

For the season, Davis scored 109 goals while allowing the opposition only nine. Makenna Rubinstein was the locals’ top goal-scorer this spring with 20, Iverson had 14 and Thompson and Emily Torbert added 10 each.

DHS JV baseball

The Blue Devils began last week with two more lopsided wins, then lost a tough one at Elk Grove to even their record 13-13 and get to 10-4 in the rugged Delta Valley Conference.

First, DHS ran away with 27-1 and 27-0 wins victories over Monterey Trail, before the Thundering Herd topped the locals, 7-2.

At Elk Grove on Friday, the Devils got off to a strong start as leadoff hitter Andrew Bolich blasted the second pitch he saw deep into right field for a double.

Jared McNece followed with a single to right, moving Bolich to third. An errant throw in an attempt to catch McNece stealing second resulted in Bolich coming home and McNece moving into scoring position. Davis then wasted no time in capitalizing with a sacrifice fly by Nate Curtis that plated McNece.

But from there, Elk Grove’s pitcher, Alex Zalasky, settled down and completed the game with no more runs allowed.

The Blue Devils threatened in the fourth inning, loading the bases with only one out when Curtis and Andrew Grindall smacked singles and Zalasky hit Kyle England with a pitch. Unfortunately, a double play put a quick end to that opportunity. The locals also got hits from Grindall and Quentin McCray in the seventh, but were unable to score.

Meanwhile, the Thundering Herd tied the game at 2-2 in the bottom of the second and chipped away at DHS starter Grindall and reliever Ben D’Angelo for five more runs.

Highlights from the Monterey Trail games included strong outings by pitchers Dustin Tillman, Kyle England, Kris Prince and Solomon Biers-Ariel.

On the offensive side, every player’s bat contributed as Davis tallied 36 hits over the two mercy rule-shortened games. Crowd-pleasers were a home run by Bolich and a triple by D’Angelo, which would have been a home run if the Devils weren’t being merciful.

DHS freshman baseball

Winning 2-1 and losing 9-7, the Blue Devils split a pair of games with Pioneer last week.

Going into the final week of the season, the locals are 6-3 in league and 9-9 overall.

Playing in near-gale force winds, DHS fell to the Patriots on April 30 at Playfields Park.

Already down by four at that point, the Devils produced their first run in the bottom of the second inning when Mason Shorts’ sacrifice fly brought in Greg Rohnstock. In the next frame, Alex Timmons doubled and was knocked in by Glen Welch.

Davis starting pitcher Noah Riffle gave up only two hits in his four innings on the mound, but walks and fielding errors supplied the Pats with ample base runners and a 5-2 lead after three.

In the fourth inning, locals Daniel Henrickson and Josh Milenbach offered up back-to-back line drives. Jake Guerrero’s fielder’s choice grounder erased Henrickson, but moved Milenbach to second, before Pioneer errors allowed Milenbach and Guerrero to score. Three successive walks (Timmons, James Richardson and Welch) set up additional opportunities, with Timmons coming in on a wild pitch and Greg Rohnstock’s sac bunt plating Richardson to put the Blue Devils up 6-5.

Peter Frame came in to relieve Riffle and threw a hitless fifth inning to keep the score the same, then struck out the first two batters of the sixth before PHS produced three quick runs to take an 8-6 advantage. Gabe Gutierrez then took the mound and struck out the next batter to end the inning.

In the bottom of the frame, Devil Brendon Tull — who had been sidelined all season due to injuries — beat out an infield hit in his first plate appearance of the year to get a rousing ovation from both the dugout and stands. He stole second and scored on Ray Young’s hit, but Young was nailed at second and that was it for DHS.

In Woodland for Thursday’s game, the Blue Devils prevailed in an extra-inning pitchers’ duel.

Davis hurler Pierce Tujo threw all eight innings, striking out 11 and walking only one to get a well-earned victory.

The only Patriot run came in the first inning — helped by an infield hit and an error — before Tujo struck out the side.

The Devils evened the score right away when Rohnstock reached second on an error and Henrickson (2-for-3) drove him home on a crisply hit liner to left in the top of the second.

Hits by Christian Lien and Frame were all DHS got over the next six innings as the game remained tied at 1-1 until the eighth. Rohnstock reached first on another Pioneer error, advanced to second on Milenbach’s center field liner, stole third and came home on a wild pitch to give the locals the eventual winning run.

It wasn’t easy in the bottom of the eighth, as the Patriots loaded the bases, but an exciting double play clinched the victory. Blue Devil right fielder Gutierrez got a fly ball then threw in to catcher Riffle, who pitched back to Tujo to nail a runner at the plate.

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DHS freshman player Ray Young singles during a recent game against Pioneer. The Blue Devils and Patriots played twice last week, with each winning once. Courtesy photo

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