Santaluces Wins Slam Opener Behind Pitching Gem From Hunter Kyzar

Santaluces players get loose before their Opening Day 4-0 win over Suncoast.

Find a good pitch, put the ball in play and run fast.

These are the words that Santaluces senior Ernie Cabrera has heard over and over again for the past three seasons. The speedy lead-off hitter has heard this so much it is stuck in his head every time he approaches the plate.

On Monday evening, Cabrera let his coaches know that he is listening.

The speedster wrecked havoc on the bases to help the host Chiefs manufacture all the runs they needed in their 4-0 victory over Suncoast in the opening night of the Santaluces Grand Slam Tournament, played at Santaluces Sports Complex in Lantana.

The Chiefs jumped to an early lead after recording three consecutive singles leading off in the bottom of the first. Cabrera singled on a sharp line-drive to left field, then stole second and came in on a sharp RBI liner from senior Zack Saldivar. Junior catcher Dominic Teresi then drove in Saldivar on a deep shot to centerfield.

“It feels good to start with a win,” Cabrera said after reaching base in all three of his plate appearances to go 2-for-3 with two stolen bases and two runs.

After reaching on an error in the sixth, Cabrera came in to score again on a perfectly executed suicide-squeeze bunt that plated two runners.

“We practice bunting a lot, and I was ready to run,” he said.

The two early runs were all that the Chiefs (1-0) needed to stake for starter Hunter Kyzar, who proved early on that this night belonged to him.

The senior lefty pounded the strike zone, tossing 47 of his 65 pitches for strikes while facing only one batter over the minimum through six full innings of work.

“I felt comfortable, and I was really attacking the batters,” Kyzak said. “My change-up was working well, and I felt really good out there.”

Kyzak finished with six strikeouts without issuing any walks and allowing only one hit to earn his first win of the season.

After giving up three consecutive hits to start, Chargers starter Jack Granger settled down the rest of the way and allowed only one more hit while recording four strikeouts. The right-hander also was effective in hitting his spots, as he threw 54 of his 68 pitches for strikes.

Suncoast’s Shane Quo prepares to hit during the team’s opening day loss to Santaluces.

“Our pitching was wonderful tonight. Jack Granger did a wonderful job matching up with their number-one guy,” Suncoast coach B.J. Gilbert said. “I was very impressed with both pitchers.”

Suncoast was shaky on defense in committing four late errors, but its struggles were primarily at the plate. The Chargers (0-1) did not record their first baserunner until Justin Walker’s single in the fifth inning.

Walker’s hit gave the Chargers their first scoring opportunity of the night with runners on first and second, but the Chiefs perfectly executed a 6-4-3 double play to end the inning and escape the threat.

Suncoast also fought its way out of a jam in the bottom of the third after Cabrera’s second stolen base again put him in scoring position. Granger forced a popout and then Walker came through with an impressive scoop on a line drive to third base to throw out the hitter and strand Cabrera on the bases.

“We have to make sure we put the ball in play and also we have to make plays,” Gilbert said. “Once we make those plays and we cut down on those errors, we cut down on some of these runs they scored tonight.”

With both pitchers getting in an early groove and then cruising along, the game came down to which team would execute the little things.

On this night, the host Chiefs did everything according to coach Nick Franco’s plan.

“We preach to our pitchers to dominate the strike zone. We try to use all the speed we have at the top of our lineup, and in the right situation, we will try the squeeze play,” Franco said. “This is our philosophy as a team, and tonight we executed it perfectly.”

In other tournament action, Jupiter defeated American Heritage 3-0, Palm Beach Central downed Atlantic 13-3 and Summit Christian beat Trinity Christian 10-3. The tournament continues with four more games on Tuesday.

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