Kentridge shut out and swept in series finale vs. Kennedy

Published 2:00 pm Thursday, April 9, 2026

Kentridge High School baseball can’t seem to catch a break this season. After blowing another seventh-inning lead in game one of the series against Kennedy Catholic on April 7, a game where Kentridge led 4-0 heading to the bottom of the seventh before losing 5-4, the Chargers had another chance to respond against the Lancers in game two.

But a nightmarish first inning hamstrung Kentridge from the start.

The Chargers (4-6) fell 7-0 to Kennedy (9-2) as the Lancers have now won eight of their last nine.

Kentridge’s Akoni Nazarino took the ball for head coach Sheldon Stober, but an error-riddled first inning led to a first round knockout.

“He did his job, he got ground balls and got pop-ups and did exactly what he needed to do,” Stober said. “You don’t want him to get frustrated with his teammates because then it leads to issues. I just wanted to keep him behind all his guys.”

To lead off the game, Kaipo Matsushima lined a ball toward second base that went right between the legs of Cardo Del Fierro. Admittedly it was hit hard, estimated 95 mph off the bat. But that kicked off the avalanche that was soon to follow.

After Elliot Kelley-Peterson singled, an RBI ground out scored the game’s first run for Kennedy. An error from Nazarino on a throw to first base after a bunt extended the inning, and then another error by Kolby Martin at first allowed the fourth run of the inning to cross. Seamus Dunn singled home the fifth run of the inning, and before Kentridge even stepped to the plate, the game seemed out of reach.

Following the first inning, Nazarino settled in for the most part. Over the next four innings, Nazarino didn’t allow a hit. In what could have been a disaster, Nazarino steered the ship to calmer waters.

“To be able to bounce back and have those quicker innings shows he’s got some maturity finally. Especially because he has so much experience because he’ll need that later in the season,” Stober said.

But the offense was just not up to the challenge from Kennedy starter Brayden Seiber. The right-handed sophomore threw an 82-pitch complete game and allowed just three hits across the seven innings. Seiber struck out 10, walked one, and he was dominant and threw a ton of strikes.

Kentridge has just three weeks left of the season, and a resume that could be one of the best in the state now looks subpar. And with just four series remaining, the Chargers need to start putting W’s in the win column.

“We just have to take it one game at a time and keep building off it. We have had some very very good games, and I think there have been a lot of positives. But we have had trouble playing a full seven innings,” Stober said. “We play five, six good innings and then there is one where it falls apart.”