The562’s coverage of Lakewood Athletics is sponsored by J.P. Crawford, Class of 2013.
The562’s coverage of Long Beach Wilson Athletics is sponsored by Joel Bitonio, Class of 2009.
It was an All-Moore League clash for the final spot in the American Legion Baseball Senior State Tournament, as Wilson High hosted Lakewood on Friday evening.
A team representing Downey High had already claimed the 4th Area Championship with a win over Lakewood’s squad the day before, leaving a winner-take-all scenario for the matchup between Wilson and Lakewood on Skip Rowland Field.
The visitors from Lakewood were able to bounce back for a solid 11-5 victory, punching their ticket to the state tournament next weekend at Hart Park in Orange.
The Lakewood team is representing American Legion Post 496, where longtime Lancers head baseball coach Spud O’Neil has been a member for 35 years. This year’s team is being led by Davis Towne, Lakewood High’s pitching coach during the high school season.
“They’ve really embraced a next guy up mentality, and it’s really just about controlling one at-bat, one inning at a time,” said Towne of Lakewood’s performance thus far. “When you put that over the course of seven innings, good things will happen. Pitching has managed to keep us in ball games, and we’ve just been able to grind it out.”
After Wilson took an early 2-0 lead in the bottom of the second, Lakewood responded with a three-spot in the top of the third, one of three big innings on the day. They also added three more runs in the fourth, and a decisive four-run inning in the sixth to give themselves plenty of breathing room.
First baseman Jayden Pea and third baseman Anthony Rueda each had a pair of hits and three RBIs for the Lakewood offense, and Xavier Nunez was 1/1 with a pair of walks and two runs scored. Leadoff man and shortstop Nate Gallegos did his job at the top of the lineup with a pair of base hits and three runs scored.
Only one of Lakewood’s seven hits went for extra bases, and it was easily the biggest hit of the day. With two outs and the bases loaded in the 4th inning, Pea drove a 1-2 pitch into the left center field gap to clear the bases, giving Lakewood a 6-2 lead that they would never relinquish.
Wilson was able to pull back within a run with a three-run rally in the 5th, but Nunez came into a bases loaded situation on the mound and got a massive out to strand all three runners. Inheriting a 2-0 count, Nunez was able to induce an inning-ending grounder to shortstop on his first offering, then collected the remaining six outs to lock down the save.
“He was good for us his 10th grade year, then battled injuries last year, so summer has just been about getting him back out there and getting him comfortable,” said Towne of Nunez. “The last time he was at Wilson he ran into some adversity and got beat. Today he was able to show some resiliency, getting more comfortable with being in that position, and he was able to succeed today.”
Lathan Rivas got the start for Lakewood, pitching 4.2 innings and earning the win. He allowed five unearned runs on five hits and three walks.
Desi Whelan led the Wilson offense with a pair of hits, including a double. Charlie Thompson was on base twice with a single and a walk.
American Legion Baseball is celebrating its 100th year in 2025, and offers a unique opportunity for amateur baseball players aged 13-19 to compete in a summer baseball competition across all 50 states.
The next round of the competition will take place July 23-28 at Hart Park in Orange, where teams will look to advance out of the state tournament and into the Western Region 8 Tournament, bringing together teams from Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Hawaii. That competition will be August 6-10 in Fairfield, Calif. with teams then advancing to the American Legion World Series August 15-20 in Shelby, N.C.
