The Power Of A Sweep; Oilers Throttle CDM To Secure 10th Straight Victory
Dane Cunningham blasts his 3rd home run of the season, putting an exclamation point on another undefeated Sunset League series
The Huntington Beach Oilers (11-2-1) easily handled the Corona Del Mar SeaKings (6-10) by the final of 11-1, Friday afternoon from HBHS Stadium. This locks down a third consecutive sweep of a Sunset League opponent, while also moving forward the season-high winning streak to double digits.
For the fourth time this season, the Oilers fell behind to begin the contest as SeaKings starting pitcher Stevie Jones ripped an RBI double off Oilers starter Tanner Brown for the early 1-0 lead. CDM nearly doubled their lead on the very next play, but outfielder Owen Bone threw a dart to home, nailing Jones trying to advance.
Right away, the Oilers fought back in the first inning as the first three batters reached base with the game-tying hit coming off the bat of Ely Mason, scoring Parker Leoff (who has now reached base a total of 10 times in 12 at-bats to begin his Oilers career). After Brown came back on the bump for a 1-2-3 top of the second, the red hot Huntington Beach offense supported the lefty by blowing the doors open and executing their largest scoring second inning of the year. Six runs on seven hits while sending nine batters to the plate proved how much the offense diligently studied the opposition. Maxx Hopkins and Jason Dunham poked RBI singles right back up the middle, with Mason providing the dagger of a bases-clearing triple to left-center field.
The offense did not take their foot off the gas pedal in the fourth as Jared Grindlinger picked up right where he left off on Wednesday, contributing by singling home Leoff. In the last two games combined, Grindlinger is now 7-for-8, with five runs batted in. Following a pitching change, Dane Cunningham unloaded on a first-pitch fastball for a three-run home run, his third big fly of 2026.
Having a 11-1 lead just about half way through the game, pitching settled in as Brown finished his performance going four innings, yielding just one run and totaling four strikeouts. The bullpen of Mason Tapia, Grady Ream and Duncan McLeod would mop up the rest of the SeaKings lineup, posting three scoreless innings to wrap up the series sweep.
With today's win, the Oilers now head to the Boras Classic on Tuesday with an 11-2-1 overall record, 8-0 at home and scoring 84 runs on 117 hits during the 10-game winning streak.
Oilers Scoring Plays:
Bot 1: Ely Mason Singles to LF, Parker Leoff Scores (1-1 TIE)
Bot 2: Maxx Hopkins Singles to CF, Owen Bone Scores (2-1 HB)
Bot 2: Jason Dunham Singles to CF, Maxx Hopkins Scores (3-1 HB)
Bot 2: Ely Mason Triples to CF, Jason Dunham, Parker Leoff & Jared Grindlinger Scores (6-1 HB)
Bot 2: Dane Cunningham Singles to CF, Ely Mason Scores (7-1 HB)
Bot 4: Jared Grindlinger Singles to CF, Parker Leoff Scores (8-1 HB)
Bot 4: Dane Cunningham Home Run to LF, Jared Grindlinger & Ely Mason Scores (11-1 HB)
Stars of the Game:
Dane Cunningham: 2-3, HR, 4 RBI
Ely Mason: 2-3, 4 RBI
Jared Grindlinger: 3-3, RBI, 2 R
Parker Leoff: 2-3, 3 R
Tanner Brown: 4 IP, 1 ER, 4 K
Bullpen: 3 IP, 0 ER, 4 K (Mason Tapia, Grady Ream & Duncan McLeod - combined)
The Oilers return to action on Tuesday, April 7 as they kick off the 2026 Boras Classic at 12:00 PM versus Los Osos (Rancho Cucamonga) from Mater Dei High School. You'll be able to listen to all the action during this four-day tournament on hbhsathletics.mixlr.com with the "Voice of the Oilers" Dominick Lorenz,. Tuesday's game will begin with the pregame show approximately at 11:45 AM, followed by first pitch at 12:00 PM (projected times).
LISTEN TO HUNTINGTON BEACH VS. CORONA DEL MAR SEAKINGS HIGHLIGHTS HERE (CLICK IMAGE BELOW):
