Sierra warded off a late rally from Central to win 8-7 and finish the 44th Annual Fresno Easter Classic with a 3-1 record Wednesday at Clovis High.

The Timberwolves (8-5-1) staked a 6-2 lead before the Grizzlies (12-5) of Fresno mounted their comeback attempt.

Dakota Conners batted 3 for 4 and bashed a homer. Ian Rodriguez was 2 for 4 with a double, and starting pitcher Ryan Vazquez added a double of his own. Jake Souza contributed a double and two RBIs. Hunter Peterson was the winning pitcher in relief.

It was overall a fruitful three-day trip for Sierra, which returns from its spring break next week with a two-game set against Weston Ranch. It faced three teams from the Central Section boasting no less than 12 wins each and fared well against them, losing only to 13-3 Kerman by a 4-2score.

“We’re real happy with going 3-1 in the tournament,” Sierra coach Jack Thomson said. “There were 34 teams in it and among them were some of the best teams from the Fresno-Clovis area and California. We feel like we came home a better team than we left.”



Lathrop 4, Brookside 3

At Stockton’s Billy Hebert Field, the Spartans (5-7) battled back from a 3-0 first-inning deficit to scratch out a victory. The loss was just the second for Brookside Christian (11-2).

Lathrop didn’t score until the fourth and fifth innings when it struck for two runs in each frame. Miguel Castellanos had two of Lathrop’s big hits, first an RBI single in the fourth, then a two-run knock in the fifth. Michael Pereznegron hammered a double in the fifth, and Preston Rizo struck out three batters in the final two innings to earn the win. Lathrop used different pitchers.

“Proud of how the team came together and battled through the 3-0 deficit,” Lathrop coach Randy Baltazar said. “There were times we could have thrown in the towel but the kids kept fighting.”



Freshman softball

East Union 11, Atwater 4

The Lancers improved to 12-0 with Wednesday’s nonleague victory in Atwater. Vanessa Martinez and Nathalie Quant were 2 for 4 with two RBIs apiece. Raqual Duenas finished 1 for 2 with a triple and two RBIs.

Pitcher Rebeca Leonard scattered six hits, struck out five and walked none while giving up just one earned run.