CARY, N.C. – Orange Lutheran High School (Orange, Calif.) began its title defense with a 6-3 win over Hanover High School (Hanover, Va.) at the USA Baseball National High School Invitational (NHSI) presented by the Greater Raleigh Sports Alliance on Wednesday, April 6, in Cary, North Carolina.

With the win, Orange Lutheran (1-0) advances to the quarterfinals of the 2022 NHSI on Thursday. Hanover (0-1) falls into the consolation bracket.

The Lancers got early offense, scoring once in the first and three times in the second to grab a quick lead. Oliver Santos delivered a strong start for the defending champs, tossing 4.2 innings and striking out nine. Ethan Miranda got the win for the Lancers after throwing 1.1 scoreless innings with three strikeouts.

Derek Curiel (2-for-4) led the Lancers offensively, scoring a pair of runs from the leadoff spot. The Lancers got two-RBI games from Mikey Romero (0-for-2) and Ben Reiland (1-for-3), who were the only two players in the game to drive in multiple runs. Hanover’s offense was paced by Seth Keller (2-for-2), with had the only two-hit game of the day for the Hawks.

GAME HIGHLIGHTS

• Orange Lutheran’s bats were awake early, as Curiel doubled to lead off the game before scoring on a sacrifice fly by Romero to give the Lancers a quick 1-0 lead.
• The Lancers rattled off three consecutive hits in the second inning. After Gabriel Miranda opened the frame with a single and Bryan Martinez doubled, both scored on a two-run double to left field by Reiland. Another run was plated on an error to extend Orange Lutheran’s lead to 4-0.
• Hanover cracked the scoreboard in the bottom of the third, when Keller hit a two-out RBI single to trim the Hawks’ deficit to three runs.
• Romero added a second sacrifice fly in the top of the fifth, plating Curiel on a deep fly ball to right-center field as the Lancers advantage grew to four.
• The Hawks put together a rally in the bottom of the fifth to cut back into the deficit. After Owen DeShazo singled and Keller drew a walk, Cannon Peebles made it a 5-2 game with an RBI single through the left side.
• Chase Cummings answered with an RBI single of its own in the bottom of the sixth for Orange Lutheran, giving the Lancers a 6-2 edge.
• Hanover battled in the bottom of the seventh, scoring once on an RBI single by Nolan Williamson, but could not add any more runs as the Lancers secured a 6-3 opening round win.

NOTABLE INFORMATION

• With the win, Orange Lutheran extends its NHSI winning streak to 14 games. The Lancers have not lost a tournament game since the 2014 event.
• Levi Huesman suffered the loss for Hanover, pitching 5 innings and allowing four earned runs. The southpaw also struck out five.
• Orange Lutheran’s pitching staff combined for 12 strikeouts in the win.

ON DECK

• Orange Lutheran advances to the quarterfinals of the 2022 National High School Invitational on Thursday. The Lancers will face Basic Academy, who beat The First Academy in the opening round.
• Hanover falls into the consolation bracket with the loss. Their next opponent will be announced this evening.

SOCIAL MEDIA

Stay tuned with all of the action at the 2022 National High School Invitational by following @USABEvents on Twitter and @USABaseball on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Fans and media can use #NHSI22 in their posts.