Bronco All-Stars defeated

CORONA ? The Newport Harbor Baseball Assn. Bronco All-Stars wanted nothing more than to beat rival Dana Point on Friday night in the Region Tournament at Santana Park.

Newport Harbor had its chances, but left seven runners in scoring position in a 5-3 loss, leaving the team a loss away from season-ending elimination.

Newport Harbor plays Corona today at 10 a.m. in an elimination game. With a win, another elimination game will follow at 4 p.m.

After the game, Newport Harbor Manager Tony Swies said he thought his team could probably beat Dana Point, seven out of 10 times. Still, he was complementary toward the victors.

“They beat us fair and square,” Swies said. “They hit better than us, pitched better than us and played better defense.”

Dana Point has won three of four postseason meetings with Newport Harbor this season.

Newport Harbor scored twice in the first two innings. Nick McCann hit a first-inning triple into the right-center-field gap, and later scored on Matt Carpenter’s sacrifice fly.

Tyler Kiehnle reached on a second-inning error and scored when Conor Sweeney stole second and the catcher’s throw went into center field.

But Dana Point scored a single run in the third, fourth and fifth innings to grab a 3-2 lead.

McCann led off the bottom of the fifth with his second triple of the game, this one down the right-field line. But he was stranded when Dana Point got back-to-back strikeouts and a groundout.

Dana Point scored two more in the seventh, when it had two singles and benefited from two wild pitches and a passed ball.

Newport Harbor tried to mount a seventh-inning rally.

Daniel Albert reached on an error and Brett Parker followed with a single to center. Albert scored when McCann grounded into a fielder’s choice to cut the deficit to 5-3.

After Carpenter singled to center, and advanced to second on a passed ball, Newport Harbor had runners at second and third with just one out.

But Dana Point pitcher Lucas Tankas got a strikeout and a groundout to end the threat and the game.

McCann was two for four and allowed one hit through three innings on the mound for Newport Harbor.