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Barrett comes up big on mound as Carlsbad Gold forces rematch

By: MARWAN RAZOUK - Staff Writer | Friday, July 13, 2007 11:37 PM PDT ∞

SAN DIEGO ---- Ryan Barrett might have been the smallest player on the diamond at North City Field, but he certainly made the biggest impact.

The right-handed starting pitcher threw his first complete-game shutout over seven innings to lead the Carlsbad Gold All-Stars to an 8-0 victory over the Fallbrook Red All-Stars in a Pony League Bronco Section showdown on Friday.

Carlsbad's win set up a rematch at 10 a.m. today at the same site in a game that will determine the section champion. Since the top two of the bracket advance to the regional playoffs in Whittier, the game today will be for bragging rights and seeding in the next round.

Fallbrook had been undefeated in the double-elimination bracket with a win over Carlsbad on Wednesday, but Barrett took notice of the Fallbrook hitters in that game and his game plan unfolded exactly as he wanted.

"They were hitting a lot of fastballs," said the 12-year old, who allowed only four hits and one walk. "I was throwing mostly off-speed stuff and hitting my spots."

Fallbrook manager Clay Hampton echoed the sentiment, but had another theory for his team's lackluster performance.

"You roll over a couple of teams and you think you're the man," he said. "It's a wake-up call and we should be ready (today)."

The closest Fallbrook came to scoring was in the bottom of the fourth, when it loaded the bases with one out, trailing 6-0. But Barrett recorded two of his six strikeouts to get out of the jam.

It wasn't until Matt Holmes-Rodriguez hit a two-run home run in the sixth to extend Carlsbad's lead to 8-0 that Barrett began to relax.

"When Matt hit the homer, I thought 'We're gonna win this game,' " he said.

Holmes-Rodriguez finished 1-for-3 with a home run and three RBIs. Sam Casinelli was 2-for-3 with three runs scored. But his biggest contribution came in the third inning when he made a spectacular diving catch to rob Fallbrook catcher Chip La Chat of a base hit.

David Flores of Fallbrook just missed a home run in the second inning and ended up with a long single.

Contact staff writer Marwan Razouk at mrazouk@nctimes.com.