The Venice varsity baseball team is 3-8 in the Western League but holds an overall record of 16-11.

Luckily the team will go into playoffs, which begin on May 19. Their first game will be away against Los Angeles High School.  If they win that game, they will advance to quarterfinals and play either Eagle Rock or Hollywood on May 21.

Unfortunately, the varsity team did not end their season well, losing back-to-back games to Hamilton.  On the May 4 game, the last game of the regular season, the Gondos lost 10-4.

            The Gondos started the game with a lead of 1-0 but lamentably, the Yankees rallied in the second inning and scored five runs off of pitcher Nolan Sax.  Venice was struggling defensively throughout the inning; however, in the bottom of the second, the Gondos built up some momentum by scoring two runs, which included a triple by Anthony Smith into deep center field.

The game was close and very exciting, and there was still some hope for the Gondos to tie and even win. However, going into the top of the third the Gondos saw similar problems as in the inning before.

Seeing how Sax was struggling on the mound, Coach Walter Fujita decided to switch him for catcher Daniel Hordo.  This change worked out perfectly for him because Hordo quickly got the team out of the difficult inning with a strike out and a ground out.

In the bottom of the third, the Gondos had a couple of good at-bats, including another triple by Smith.  Smith, however, was clearly not looking for a triple; he was looking for a home run but was denied by left field’s very high fence.  The ball hit the fence’s top rail. By the end of the third inning, the Gondos were down 9-3.

The game’s momentum was lost after the third inning; however, Hordo only allowed one more run the rest of the game and it ended with a score of 10-4.

            The Venice Gondoliers overwhelmed the LACES Unicorns at a home game on Monday, April 26, with a score of 12-2.  The Gondos took advantage of a shaky LACES pitcher, who got the bases loaded twice. An error by the third baseman allowed four runs to be scored in the third inning. Hordo hit a homerun over center field fence in that inning.  The Gondos fell into a rhythm the whole game and dominated LACES.

            On April 23, Westchester beat the Gondos with a score of 14-2.  The Gondos saw a horrible fourth inning, in which they allowed 13 runs to be scored.  This was the second game in a two-game series with Westchester, and the Gondos lost both.  On April 15, the Gondos lost against Palisades; with a final score of 10-1.           

            The JV team ended the regular season with a 7-4 record, but they are not scheduled to have play-offs this year.

For new players like freshman second baseman Octavio Montoya, this season has been a new experience.  He said that it has been different and a more competitive environment than Little League.  Being inexperienced, Montoya only got to start some of the games; however, he is certain that he will be able to get into the varsity team next year.  Montoya got at least a hit in every game he played in.