GRAHAM SHUTS DOWN PANTHERS TO OPEN BORAS CLASSIC: Behind a masterful performance on the mound from senior pitcher Otto Graham, the @jserra.baseball team began the 2026 Boras Baseball Classic on Tuesday with an impressive 5-0 victory over the Corona Panthers in a first round Southern Section Bracket game at JSerra Catholic High School.
The Lions struck for two runs in the bottom of the third inning.
After back-to-back singles by freshman Joey Koenig and senior Blake Bowen, a double steal put the runners on second and third with one out.
Koenig scored on a wild pitch that also advanced Bowen to third.
One pitch later, Bowen successfully stole home for the second run of the inning.
Bowen swiped three of the team’s five stolen bases.
His bat helped increase the lead in the bottom of the fifth inning, as Bowen followed a leadoff single to left field by Koenig by launching a no-doubt rocket well over the wall in center field for a two-run homerun, his team-leading fourth of the season.
That proved to be more than enough run support for Graham, who was sensational against a Panthers team boasting an 11-1 record coming into the game and had scored eight or more runs eight times.
Graham struck out two batters in each of the first four innings and then struck out the side in the fifth inning, as he masterfully changed speeds and located his pitches with stellar precision to keep the Panthers’ lineup completely off balance.
Koening topped off a 3-for-4 night at the plate with an RBI double down the left field line that plated sophomore pitch runner Cameron Hill for the final run of the game.
Graham closed out his dominant effort in the seventh inning, allowing only two hits in the game and finishing with 12 strikeouts.
JSerra will host Aquinas High School on Wednesday in the quarterfinals.
First pitch is scheduled for 6:00 p.m.
#lionnation #jserrabaseball #jserraathletics
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