Top sports moments: Princeton baseball falls just short of 4th consecutive title

Princeton High's quest for four consecutive Northern Section Division VI baseball championships came to an end on May 19 when American Christian Academy rallied from a four-run deficit to win 7-4 at Shasta College in Redding.

Princeton scored four runs in the bottom of the first inning but was unable to score the rest of the way, while ACA put up seven unanswered runs to take the title.

The Eagles (13-5) lost four in a row early in the season but went on an 11-game win streak the rest of the way before losing to ACA in the title game. The win streak stretched throughout the entirety of league play, including two wins against the same ACA team, and earned Princeton the Evergreen League championship.

Senior Chad Zoller batted .458 with a team-high 19 RBIs, Gavino Mitchum hit .460 with 23 runs, Vince Vasquez batted at a .438 clip, and Rod Angus contributed a .431 average with 23 runs, 17 RBIs, six doubles and a home run.

As a team, Princeton batted .367 and outscored opponents 162-72. The Eagles used Fernando Sotelo, Angus, Zoller and Mitchum in the starting rotation and combined to pitch four shutouts.

Mitchum, Zoller and Angus earned first-team All-Evergreen League honors, and Jared Mascadri and Vince Vasquez earned honorable mention honors.