Boldt Still a Riveting Performer

No matter the season, Sean Boldt continues to be a one-man hub of activity at El Camino Real High.

Last fall, Boldt was selected as an All-City Section 4-A Division defensive back for the football team after he consistently made the big plays. As the team’s backup quarterback, he also surrendered a few by throwing interceptions.

As a second-year starter on the baseball team, Boldt again is attracting attention and making noise--and from square one. In El Camino Real’s opener against Chatsworth two weeks ago, Boldt dropped a fly ball in right field. Later in the game, Boldt--nicknamed “Lightning” by teammates--easily gunned down a Chatsworth baserunner at the plate who tried to score from second on a single to right.

Boldt also had three hits against the Chancellors. In three games, Boldt is five for 10 with five runs batted in, five runs scored and one home run. Possibly the team’s best pitcher as well, Boldt (1-0) has allowed two runs on six hits in 10 2/3 innings, walked two and struck out 10.

Hitting: With a team batting average of .367 in its first six games, it would seem unlikely that Chatsworth would have any holes in its lineup.

However, offensive production from the first-base position has been spotty at best. Chancellor first basemen started the season a combined one for 16, and the hit was a bunt single. Then again, Chatsworth won a City 4-A title last season with limited production from first baseman Soly Maya, who batted .247. . . .

Off to a hot start is Crespi senior Vic Seper, who has 10 hits in 20 at-bats. . . .

Hart’s Keith Halcovich has been battling a sore throwing arm and that is evident on the mound where he has a 10.50 earned-run average and an 0-2 record. However, the 6-foot-5 senior has been making his contributions at the plate with a .684 batting average in Hart’s first six games.

Last week, Halcovich was four for four with two doubles and three RBIs against Saugus and was three for four with a double and two RBIs against Burroughs. . . .

Santa Paula’s Dustin Magdaleno is a bright spot on a 1-4-1 team. The Cardinals are batting only .211 collectively, but Magdaleno is hitting .425 and has seven stolen bases.

Birmingham’s Mike Malkin is 11 for 20 with a home run. . . .

Sylmar’s Dereck Ornelas is batting a team-high .429.

Pitching: Crespi sophomore Jeff Suppan shows no signs of a sophomore jinx. After a fine freshman season on the varsity that included a no-hitter against Torrance, Suppan is 2-0 and has 27 strikeouts in 18 innings. “He’s a pretty hard thrower,” Crespi Coach Scott Muckey said. “They clocked him at about 79 the other day.”. . . .

Montclair Prep’s Russell (Pistol) Ortiz is establishing himself as one of the area’s top junior pitchers. After a 7-1 sophomore year and a 1.62 ERA, Ortiz is 3-0 and has allowed just two earned runs in 14 innings. . . .

Cousins Anthony and Phillip Chessani both pitch for Fillmore, and the pair have combined for a 3-0 record on the mound. Anthony, a senior, has two wins.

Miscellany: Calabasas’ early woes are evident numerically. The 0-3 Coyotes have a team batting average of .156 and a team ERA of 7.11. . . .

Crespi’s Joe Ruggiero has stolen seven bases in seven games.

Over the top: Birmingham pole vaulter Howard Schrier opened his senior season with a respectable 13-foot, 6-inch vault against North Hollywood on March 8, but over the next eight days the defending City champion added 14 inches to his seasonal best. . . .

Last Friday, a week after the North Hollywood meet, Schrier cleared a personal-best 14-8 against Grant and vaulted 14-6 in the Northridge/Alemany Invitational.

Runaways: Canoga Park has been outscored, 37-6, by three Mid-Valley League baseball teams. East Valley teams have shown no mercy on North Hollywood, having outscored the Huskies, 31-4.

Bat busters: Seven Poly starters were batting better than .300 after seven games. Right fielder Jesus Perez led the way with a .421 average, followed by Francisco Flores (.389), Steve Chavez (.368), Raul Torres (.364), Robert Aros (.360), Marlon McKinney (.333) and Jonathan Campbell (.333).

Softball: Newbury Park’s Sophie Sobol (4-0) struck out 21 batters in a nine-inning win over Pacifica in a Canyon tournament game. Sobol, a senior, has allowed one earned run in 30 innings for an 0.23 ERA.

AREA BASKETBALL TOP 10

Final Poll

Selected by sportswriters of The Times

Rk Team League Record 1 Santa Clara Frontier 28-5 2 Cleveland North Valley 19-7 3 Quartz Hill Golden 21-5 4 Notre Dame Mission 23-5 5 Taft North Valley 15-8 6 Granada Hills North Valley 18-6 7 Saugus Golden 20-10 8 Thousand Oaks Marmonte 22-5 9 Channel Islands Marmonte 20-6 10 North Hollywood Mid-Valley 15-12

REGIONAL BASEBALL TOP 10

Selected by sportswriters of The Times

Last Rk Wk Team League Record 1 2 Poly East Valley 7-1 2 1 Rio Mesa Channel 4-1 3 6 Notre Dame Mission 6-0 4 NR Channel Islands Marmonte 4-0 5 NR Simi Valley Marmonte 6-1 6 NR Camarillo Marmonte 4-2 7 3 Chatsworth West Valley 5-2 8 7 El Camino Real West Valley 2-1 9 10 San Fernando North Valley 5-2 10 NR Canyon Golden 5-0

NR--Not ranked.