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    Orange Lutheran baseball wins NHSI tournament for the fourth time
    • March 30, 2026

    The Orange Lutheran baseball team did it again.

    The Lancers won the National High School Invitational in North Carolina last week for the fourth time. They beat Venice of Florida, 7-6, in the championship game Saturday. Venice was 19-0 going into that game and No. 2 in the national rankings by MaxPreps.com.

    Orange Lutheran won the tournament three years in a row, 2017-19.

    Lancers senior right fielder Eric Zdunek was named championship game MVP after getting two hits and driving in two runs. Orange Lutheran senior catcher Brady Murrietta had two hits, too. Lancers senior second baseman CJ Weinstein contributed two RBIs.

    Weinstein batted .500 in the four tournament games with three doubles, a triple and walked four times. Senior right-handed pitcher Gary Morse tied his career high with 16 strikeouts in Orange Lutheran’s 3-0 win over Colorado’s Regis Jesuit in the tournament opener.

    Orange Lutheran starting pitcher Gary Morse delivers a pitch against Santa Margarita in a Trinity League baseball game in Orange on Wednesday, April 16, 2025. Morse is the Orange County pitcher of the year for the 2025 season. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer).
    Orange Lutheran starting pitcher Gary Morse delivers a pitch against Santa Margarita in a Trinity League baseball game in Orange on Wednesday, April 16, 2025. Morse is the Orange County pitcher of the year for the 2025 season. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer).

    Zdunek is a transfer from Maranatha in Pasadena. Orange Lutheran coach RJ Farrell said Zdunek immediately fit in with his new teammates.

    “Eric’s a super high-character young man,” Farrell said. “His ability to mesh with people has been special. He’s athletically sound in the outfield and he puts together really good at-bats.”

    Weinstein is transfer from Huntington Beach. Lancers senior right-hander Cooper Sides is a transfer who became eligible Friday and pitched five innings in a 2-1 win over Casteel of Arizona.

    The Lancers play three Trinity League games this week against St. John Bosco, ranked No. 1 in the nation by MaxPreps. The series starts Tuesday at 2:30 p.m. at Hart Park in Orange. Wednesday’s game is at Hart Park at 6:30 p.m. and Thursday’s series finale is at 1 p.m. at St. John Bosco.

    “That’s going to be fun,” Farrell said of the series with the Braves. “They’re a really talented ballclub. It’s going to be two heavyweights matched against each other.”

    NOTES

    The National Classic tournament began Monday. El Dorado, Villa Park and Yorba Linda are in it and are sites for the games. Also in the National Classic are three teams in Prep Baseball Report’s state Top 25: No. 11 Notre Dame of Sherman Oaks, No. 13 Aquinas and No. 23 Cypress. …

    The Ryan Lemmon Foundation Spring Tournament started Saturday. Laguna Beach earned a 3-1 win over La Mirada, No. 16 in Prep Baseball Report’s state rankings, on Saturday. Canyon beat Segerstrom, 6-4, on Saturday. …

    The Boras Classic South tournament begins April 7 with games at Mater Dei and JSerra. The top five teams in the PBR state rankings are in it: No. 1 Orange Lutheran, No. 2 St. John Bosco, No. 3 Corona, No. 4 Norco, and No. 5 Huntington Beach. Fountain Valley and Newport Harbor also are in the Boras Classic South. …

    Fountain Valley last week swept Corona del Mar in three very close Sunset League games: two 1-0 results, and a 3-2 win. Blake Wilson pitched a shutout in the first 1-0 win. Andrew Harviston pitched a shutout in the series-closing 1-0 win. …

    A big series in the Sunset League this week has Los Alamitos (11-4 overall, 6-1 in league) and Newport Harbor (12-2, 7-2) playing each other three times: Tuesday at Newport Harbor; Wednesday at Los Alamitos; and Friday at Newport Harbor.

    Aliso Niguel, in first place in the South Coast League with a 2-1 record, plays Trabuco Hills (1-1-1 in league) three times this week starting Tuesday at Aliso Niguel. Tesoro also is 1-1-1 in the South Coast League. …

    Portola is in first place in the Pacific Coast League with a 5-1 league record. There is a four-way tie for second place with Irvine, Laguna Beach, University and Woodbridge. All four teams are 4-2 in league. …

    Fullerton is off to a 3-0 start in the Empire League and is 11-4 overall. …

    Los Amigos is in first place in the Orange League with a 4-0 league record. The Lobos are 8-1 overall.

     

     

     Orange County Register 

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