Roundup: Hart offense shines to keep up perfect start; West Ranch takes down Saugus in slugfest  Valencia senior Noah Jaquez helped the Vikings baseball team to victory on Friday in more ways than one.  The Vikings’ ace allowed just one run over five innings on the mound and hit a leadoff double in the top of the fourth inning to spark a three-run outburst and help his team to a 5-1 road win at Castaic.  Jaquez struck out just one batter, but he scattered six hits and one walk as the Valencia (5-7, 2-3) defense worked behind him to keep the Coyotes (11-6, 4-2) from having big innings.  “That’s my whole mindset when coming in to pitch, you know, throwing strikes and trust in my defense,” Jaquez said. “We’ve got a great group of guys back there backing me up and always playing well on defense.”  Valencia pitcher Noah Jaquez (44) delivers a pitch during the fourth inning of Friday’s game against Castaic at Castaic High School on March 28, 2025. Habeba Mostafa/ The Signal Valencia’s win forced a split in the season series between the two teams after Castaic won in comeback fashion on Wednesday. The Vikings are now just a half-game behind Saugus for fourth place in the Foothill League, with a game in hand, at the midway point of the league campaign.  “We feel great,’ said Valencia head coach Tim Pennell. “I mean, we’ve lost a couple close, one-run games. We feel like we’re in it all the time. You know, we’re excited to see West Ranch (this) week, we’re excited to see Hart over spring break, and the rest of the crew, too. But we feel like we can win all the time.”  Jaquez’s double was the first hit that Valencia recorded off Castaic junior Andrew Bond, who breezed through the first three frames. Senior Colten Biggs then drove in Jaquez with a single for the first run of the game, followed by junior Tyler Wertz scoring on an error leading to a double steal, and Biggs scoring on a sacrifice fly.  Castaic second baseman Orion Gonzalez (66) throws the ball during the fifth inning of Friday’s game against Valencia at Castaic High School on March 28, 2025. Habeba Mostafa/ The Signal Wertz added some insurance runs in the top of the fifth with a two-out, two-run home run after Jaquez drew a walk to extend the frame.  “That’s a huge home run for him,” Pennell said. “He’s a great hitter, he’s a young hitter, and he’s explosive. I mean, we see this all the time in batting practice.”  Bond came out after that, finishing with three strikeouts and four earned runs allowed over 4 2/3 innings pitched. He allowed three hits and five walks.  Castaic head coach Darrell Davis said Bond was dealing with a blister on his finger throughout Friday’s game.  Valencia outfielder Kyle Josing (8) catches the ball during the fourth inning of Friday’s game against Castaic at Castaic High School on March 28, 2025. Habeba Mostafa/ The Signal “He got a blister on his finger, battled through it,” Davis said. “And then, you know, we had a couple little plays there, they executed when they had to.”  Castaic senior Chad Kober hit a solo home run to lead off the bottom of the fourth. It was his third home run in four games and his fifth on the season.  “He’s worked hard, and he’s one of our dudes, so we’re proud of him,” Davis said.  Jaquez lowered his season ERA to 1.29 over 16 1/3 innings. He’s also driven in 10 runs at the plate, scored nine times and recorded three doubles and two home runs.  Castaic pitcher Andrew Bond (17) delivers a pitch during the fifth inning of Friday’s game against Valencia at Castaic High School on March 28, 2025. Habeba Mostafa/ The Signal “A dual guy like this right here that can kind of do it all, it’s just an explosive thing for our team,” Pennell said.  Valencia gets back to the diamond on Wednesday when the Vikings travel to West Ranch before hosting the Wildcats on Friday.  Castaic lost on Saturday to Sierra Canyon, 4-2, and has its league bye this week but is slated to play three non-league games. The Coyotes are set to play Hart twice the week of April 14.  Valencia celebrates runs during the fifth inning of Friday’s game against Castaic at Castaic High School on March 28, 2025. Habeba Mostafa/ The Signal Here’s what else happened in Friday’s Foothill League baseball action:  Hart 22, Golden Valley 0: The Hart Hawks (8-6, 3-0) are still undefeated in league play after Friday’s 22-0 home win over the Golden Valley Grizzlies (4-8, 0-4).  Joshua Whitson hit a home run and drove in two runs. Michael Hogen had three hits, four RBIs and two runs scored.  Dominic Miraglia drove in four runs and Brady Werther had two hits and two RBIs. Jaiden Chathle and Anthony Cavarretta each scored three times.  West Ranch 11, Saugus 9: The West Ranch Wildcats (10-6, 5-1) held off the hosting Saugus Centurions (10-6, 3-3), 11-9, thanks to four runs in each of the second and third innings.  Ty Diaz and Landon Hu each had three hits for West Ranch, while Nolan Stoll hit a home run and drove in four runs. Hu scored four times and had three RBIs while Connor Clayton and Ryan Oh each scored twice.  Matt Long hit a home run for Saugus. Kaden Haag, Banning Sheff, Matthew Carta, Abraham Ramirez and James Frias each had two hits.  Frias and Long each scored twice.  Orlando Gutierrez struck out six in four innings on the mound for West Ranch, giving up three earned runs on seven hits and a walk to get the win.  Valencia’s Tyler Wertz (23) runs to home plate during the fifth inning of Friday’s game against Castaic at Castaic High School on March 28, 2025. Habeba Mostafa/ The Signal The post Jaquez leads Valencia baseball to road win at Castaic  appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal. ...read more read less