Bulldogs take their bite on diamond

Spencer Patterson

Monday, April 1, 2002 | 9:32 a.m.

Barely a blip on the radar screen when the 2002 prep baseball season opened, the Centennial Bulldogs are suddenly Southern Nevada's hottest team with league play just one week away.

The Bulldogs, playing in just their third year of existence, captured last week's Blazer Spring Bash with five victories. They have now won nine in a row and 10 of their last 11 to improve to 15-3 overall.

Centennial has evoked the 10-run rule in its final three contests, including last Wednesday's 13-3 victory over a solid Rim of the World (Calif.) squad that defeated No. 1 Durango one day earlier.

"Our young kids are hitting better than I thought they would," Bulldogs coach Charlie Cerrone said. "We're still not there yet, but we seem to be getting better."

Chris Bonnell, Bryce Massanari and J.C. Leach, the team's 3-4-5 hitters, have led the way. All three are batting close to .500, with Bonnell's .517 average tops on the team.

Pitchers Jordan Smiley and Dave Rider also have been impressive, combining for an 8-1 record on the mound.

"We've had different guys pick it up for us each game," Cerrone said. 'It's not like one guy is carrying us."

The Bulldogs, who already have posted wins over area powers Bishop Gorman, Bonanza, Basic and Silverado, will face Clark on Tuesday and Las Vegas on Wednesday before hosting the top-ranked Trailblazers in a suddenly significant clash on Thursday.

When Centennial begins league play next week, Cerrone's squad will have its work cut out for it in a tough Northwest Division that also features Palo Verde and Cimarron-Memorial teams coming off strong Spring Break showings.

Both the Panthers and Spartans went 3-1 at the Bishop Gorman Coca-Cola Easter Classic, with each team's only loss coming against Chatsworth (Calif.), ranked fifth in the nation by Baseball America.

Palo Verde fell to the Chancellors 13-9 in Saturday's tournament finale, spotting the out-of-towners an 8-0 lead. Chatsworth defeated Cimarron 7-2 in Friday's quarterfinals.

Silverado also returns to area action off a strong Spring Break performance. The Skyhawks went 2-2 in the competitive Classic Division of last week's Mike Morrow Invitational Lions Club Tournament in San Diego, capped by a 9-8 win over powerful Rancho Bernardo (Calif.).