Tired of playing well against good teams and losing, Santa Fe Christian did something about it Wednesday afternoon and against one of the county’s better pitchers.
The Eagles, who had lost four games in a row, edged No. 9-ranked Maranatha Christian 6-3, hanging a Coastal League loss on senior right-hander Joe Wittig.
“We faced a good pitcher, a legit college guy and got it done,” said SFC’s Jack Haferkamp. “We have a young team, but these guys compete. Our record isn’t great, but we’ve played some good teams, played them tough.
“Hopefully, this is the type of win that gets our bats going, helps us get a good seed in the playoffs. We have a good league with a lot of good teams and players. And once you get in the playoffs, you can get on a roll and anything can happen.”
With the win, Santa Fe Christian improved to 9-9 overall and 1-4 in a league that also includes La Jolla Country Day, Bishop’s and Francis Parker.
Haferkamp, who has committed to UC Santa Barbara, entered the game hitting .510 with four homers and 14 RBIs.
He finished the day with three more RBIs, scored two runs and added a long home run over the center-field fence after Wittig had left the game.
Wittig, who fell to 5-2 on the season for Maranatha (15-3, 3-2), is committed to the Air Force Academy.
But with a fastball that sits at 92 mph and touches 94, he could have professional options.
He struck out 10 batters in six innings Wednesday, but walked three and balked home the go-ahead run in the sixth.
On the other side, SFC sophomore Jack Gerardi struck out three, walked two and hit a batter, but was able to get key outs when he needed them, stranding runners in scoring position in the sixth and seventh innings in running his record to 4-2.
“We lost to Maranatha on Monday, so to bounce back was a really big win,” said Gerardi, who said he had good command of his fastball. “We’ve had a lot of highs and lows this season. This is definitely a high, a big momentum win. To beat a good Maranatha team, to beat a good pitcher, is a confidence builder.”
Gavin Mangano doubled and scored for SFC, Davis Lee drove in a run and Jackson Noonan walked and scored ahead of Haferkamp’s seventh-inning homer.
Jake Dagan doubled and scored for Maranatha, as did Aaron Shebloski. Wittig doubled and drove in a run.
“We’re kind of banged up, have guys with little nagging things,” said SFC coach Lance Roenicke. “But this is a good group, a bunch of guys who really compete.”
Santa Fe Christian 6, Maranatha Christian 3