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Tuesday Baseball — Corning at Lassen, 4 p.m. Baseball — Enterprise at Red Bluff, 1 p.m. Baseball — Williams vs Los Molinos, 4:30 p.m. Softball — Red Bluff at Enterprise, 3:30 p.m. Softball — Williams vs Los Molinos, 4:30 p.m. Soccer — Red Bluff at Enterprise, 6 p.m. Tennis — Enterprise at Red Bluff, 3 p.m. Tennis — Orland at Corning, 3:30 p.m. Sports 1B Tuesday March 30, 2010 Leading off Trio of RBs are All-Stars By RICHGREENE There’s two Starbucks in Red Bluff. I’d like to think there’s a bet- ter land-use. Even if there isn’t and commercial is the way to go, I can think of at least a couple dozen businesses I think Red Bluff should get at least one of, before doubling up on the Star- bucks. So to me, well it seems absurd, but for some, the only way to start the day is with a nice pick-me-up. That’s why even a town like Rich Red Bluff can support a double- shot of the Seattle coffee special- ist along with a Dutch Brothers, a Java Detour a Human Bean at least another handful of cafes. I don’t understand why a town where half the year is spent in 90-degree plus weather needs this many places that serve coffee, but hey, to each their own. Baseball and softball teams, well they’re just like your co-workers who come to work all groggy until the black-handled pot has been brewed up. They require something or someone to get their Greene offense started. Just like there’s two Starbucks in Red Bluff there’s also a pair of great leadoff hitters in Derek Jones and Emily McEnaney. They’re not the only noteworthy players in Tehama County or even on their own teams, but they sure have been one of the main ingredients to Red Bluff High School’s early season recipe of success. The baseball team is off to an 11-3 start and beat Sec- tion favorite Pleasant Valley 5-1 on Friday. Against the Vikings, the key to the game was the Spartans striking as quick as drive-thru service in the first inning and setting the tone. With a .618 batting average and .711 on base per- centage, Jones has been serving it up all season. The Red Bluff second baseman has scored 23 runs this season — that’s tied for second in all of California — and has 21 hits — good for fifth in the state. The Spartans coaching staff has noted part of his the senior’s success is due to the hard work he put in during the offseason. Consider this, last year Jones hit .329 for the season. Not too shabby, but it defiantly looks like decaf compared to the rate he’s currently raking at He’s turned into a singles-serving machine. Everyone knew McEnaney was a premium gourmet blend coming into this season, but still the Lady Spartans slugger has helped lead Red Bluff to a 13-4 start. McEnaney may not be your prototypical leadoff hit- ter as she’s one of the best hitters, period, not just on her own team, but in the section. For major league baseball fans, she’s the softball equivalent of Grady Sizemore — power, average and speed. She’s gone deep four times and hit four triples to go along with her .391 batting average. A little caffeine with an extra kick if you will. Her 21 runs scored are good for 13th in the state. What makes McEnaney such a smart choice to lead things off for the Lady Spartans however, is that she is more than likely going to have success when she steps into the batter’s box. Wait, more than likely, what have I been drinking? She’s carrying a .525 on base percentage that “is” more than likely. The young hitters batting behind her in the lineup not only get the benefit of a pitcher and defense worried about a runner on base, but they see firsthand reaching base can be done regardless of who’s on the mound. With their ability to reach base and their speed, Jones and McEnaney have spent the first part of the season making sure opposing fielders are forced to play on the back of their heels, not digging in their cleats. That opens things up for a Cody Gappa or a Haley Harris and puts runners on base for Brittany Fletcher and Dante Garaventa to up their RBI totals. I may be hyping up a pair of individuals, but it’s in total regard for what they do for their teams. The Lady Spartans have scored a first-inning run 10 out of 17 games. The boys have done it nine out of 14 games. You gotta' like your odds when you strike first that often. Even if the opposing pitcher is on top of their game, Jones and McEnaney have stood their ground and worked the quality at-bat. In the end it helps wear down the opposing pitcher for the rest of the team. It takes a different mentality to lead off a game — to be the first one out of the fox hole. It’s hard to fathom Jones was the middle linebacker on the football team — you’d expect a wideout’s skill set would translate better to a leadoff hitter — but the men- tal aspect is where it makes sense. Jones played on the gridiron wanting to be the first to the ball and now he’s essentially doing that on the dia- mond. One last aspect of the Spartan leadoff hitters that shouldn’t be overlooked is they also bring it on defense as well. These are great hitters, but their coaches don’t have to worry about them forgetting their glove either. At shortstop, McEnaney is every bit the 6 she wears on her back. Jones prides himself on error-free play, but that doesn’t stop him from venturing wherever he can to field a ball. There’s more to the Spartan teams than their leadoff hitters, but with two this good, you never want to be late to a game. After all, if the line is too long at one Starbucks, there’s always another one you can go to. By the time Daily News Sports Editor Rich Greene gets to work the coffee’s already gone, but at least he has his e-mail waiting for him.You can send him one at sports@redbluffdailynews.com or call him at 527-2151, ext. 109. DN Sports Editor Atrio of local high school running backs have been named to 2010 Lions All-Star Football Game’s North Team. Red Bluff’s Zack Schwabauer, Corning’s Fontaine Richardson and Los Molinos’s Richie Lakin have been invited to compete in the 33rd annual event to be held July 31 at Enterprise High School in Redding. Fifty-six players were chosen from across the North State to compete in the game. The North will be coached by Enterprise’s Daren Trueblood and the south by Portola High School’s Steve Heskett. Also invited to play on the North team are: Bryan Coleman (Enterprise), Jace Darcangelo (Enterprise), Omar Diaz (Hamilton), Mike Farris (Foothill), David Fife (West Valley), Kenny Galten (Mt. Shasta), Nate Gon- zales (Dunsmuir), Ryan Gonzalez (Hayfork), Doug Harlow (Shasta), Christian Hosler (University Prep), Shane Hunsaker (Big Valley), Darren Lee (Lassen), Europa Matia (Ander- son), Cole Sampson (Orland), Vincent Sharp (Trinity), John Shepard (Etna), Colton Silvera (Central Valley), Taylor Sloat (Fall River), Richard Stevenson (Shasta), Evan Taylor (Shasta), Andrew Valli (Shasta), Joe Wilson (Yreka), Tyler Wood (Modoc), Troy Woods (Enterprise), Jacob Woodson (Tulelake). Those invited to play for the South team are: Cole Adams (Portola), Blake Ahers (Sutter), Brandon Cherry (Las Plumas), Cody Cline (Quincy), Jessen Cole (Chico), Alex Cundiff (East Nicolaus), Frank Deluca (Durham), Ish Gorden (Live Oak), Zach Graves (Pierce), Carlos Gutierrez (Colusa), Nick Helwig (Yuba City), Clint John- son (Wheatland), Forrest Johnson (Willows), Brad Lohse (Pleasant Val- ley), Andrew Michel (Williams), Austin Morehead (Sutter), Gerardo Parra (Maxwell), Alberto Pena (Porto- la), Garrett Rice (Paradise), Cliff Robinson (Portola), Blake Rodeman (Marysville), Francisco Romero (River Valley), Aaron Ropp (Paradise), Jose Santillian (Oroville), Chase Shirley (Portola), Dakota Sisk (Gridley), Chad Wilkerson (Biggs) and Kenny Young (Pleasant Valley). More information about the game can be found at www.lionsallstarfoot- ballnorcal.com. National League preview Phillies look for a third straight trip to World Series By HOWIE RUMBERG AP Sports Writer The only thing the Philadelphia Phillies want from the St. Louis Cardinals is the title of last team to win three straight National League pennants. Albert Pujols? Heck, the Phils are fine with Ryan Howard. Besides, they boosted their chance of the first NL three-peat since the Cardinals in the 1940s by making the big deal, getting Roy Halladay in a trade that sent their playoff ace to Seattle. ‘‘I feel like the desire’s more,’’ Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said. ‘‘I think that the talent we have on this team, stay healthy, a little luck, we’ll be there again.’’ The 2010 Cardinals aren’t conceding anything, though. They brought back Big Mac to help the hitters and gave Matt Holliday a huge deal to keep him paired with Pujols in the lineup. The Phillies and Cardi- nals are the class of the league, for sure. But if the Atlanta Braves, Chicago Cubs and Colorado Rockies have their way, neither of those teams will be heading to the World Series come October. ‘‘It’s not good enough to win the division or get to the playoffs. It’s not going to be good enough this year,’’ Rockies backup first base- man Jason Giambi said, ‘‘it’s going to be to go to the World Series.’’ Until the races heat up, though, all eyes in the NL will be fixed on the next wave of budding superstars. The Braves have 20-year- old Jason Heyward and the talk of his prodigious homers. Sometime this sea- son the Cincinnati Reds will call upon Cuban left-hander Aroldis Chapman, whom they gave $30 million to unleash his 100 mph fast- ball. And in Washington, the one thing that might rival the midterm elections in antici- pation is the arrival of Stephen Strasburg and his astounding array of polished pitches. The Phillies again ran away with the NL East, but failed to defend their World Series title. So they traded late-season acquisition Cliff Lee, so brilliant in the play- offs, for Toronto’s Halladay, perhaps the best pitcher in baseball. Philadelphia also added Placido Polanco at third base and upgraded its bench. But getting out of a divi- sion that’s improved from top to bottom will be a tougher task. The New York Mets signed slugger Jason Bay to help an anemic offense — but can they stay healthy? MNGfile photo Pablo Sandoval and the Giants are hoping to squeeze into the playoffs. The Florida Marlins finally pushed their payroll over $40 million to keep the core of young talent together and the Braves made a host of moves, including bringing in a healthy Troy Glaus and closer Billy Wagner, who is 15 saves shy of 400. ‘‘You always feel good about the potential of teams. It’s a matter of if we live up to the potential,’’ Atlanta’s Chipper Jones said. ‘‘I think we’re riding under the radar and biding our time. Hope- See NL, page 2B Tehama Tracker Cardinals baseball Corning improved to 2-0 in the Northern Athletic League, Friday, with an 8-5 win at Anderson. Michael Garcia came into pitch an inning-plus of shutout relief and at the plate picked up three hits and drove in a pair of runs. Corning scored five runs in the fifth inning to break open the game. Austin Grootveld drove in a run and Cody Fox sin- gled and doubled. Corning is 7-1-1 on the season. Spartans golf Freshman Daniel Frantz won the Wolfpack Invita- tional at Gold Hills by three shots and the Spartans took second place at the 13-team tournament. Frantz beat out 75 other golfers with a low score of 73. Bryan Benton shot an 84, Justin Martinson an 88 and Brad Patchen an 89 for Red Bluff. Drew Wagner with a 93 and Peter Mitzel with a 94 rounded things out for Red Bluff. “We have a strong team and lots of experience and we have some good momentum going,” coach Elena Tomasetti said. “It was nice to beat Shasta and Pleasant Valley, because we’ve been in their shadow for quite some time.” Spartans softball The only team the Lady Spartans couldn’t beat over the weekend at the Lady Cubs tournament in Red- ding was River Valley. Red Bluff went 5-2 at the tournament, with both loss- es coming to River Valley, including in the semifinals. On Saturday, Red Bluff opened up early following a 2-1 record a day earlier in pool play. Behind a 12-strikeout performance from Megan McColpin they beat Hamil- ton 4-1. Emily McEnaney had two hits, including a double and McColpin and Harris doubled as well. Danisha Slay had an RBI and Bryce Etzler picked up two hits. Red Bluff then beat Chico 4-3, behind a couple of triples from McEnaney, who finished with three runs scored herself. Brittany Fletcher dou- bled and singled. drove in a run. picked up RBIs. McColpin doubled and Slay and Harris also McColpin and Etzler combined to shutout Lassen 1-0. Harris scored the game’s lone run and was driven in by Rodriguez. Jerilynn Purcell had a double in the game. Spartans track and field Zak Stroing placed sec- ond in the shot put at the Eagle Classic Relays. The 4x400-meter relay team of Grant Blaser, Devin Shoop, Zach Iverson and Colin Dahlberg placed third. Both the boys and girls junior varsity squads had excellent showings, high- lighted by Meaggan Rector in the shot put and discus. Bulldogs track and field At the Burt Williams Classic, hosted by Los Molinos at Central Valley High School, Carolyna Salazar had another fine showing. She placed second in the discus and third in the triple jump as the Lady Bulldogs placed seventh out of 20 schools. Linzy Irle was third in the 1600 meters. Spartans soccer The Lady Spartans had a valiant effort, Thursday, but came up short in a 2-0 loss at Pleasant Valley. Red Bluff brought just 10 players to the game and at times only played with nine. Still, it took the Viking until the last minute of the first half to get on the board. Pleasant Valley added an insurance goal in the second half.