Baseball: Long Beach captures eight All-South Coast Conference accolades

The 2012 Long Beach City College baseball team earned a total of eight All-South Coast Conference honors. The all-conference teams were selected at last weekend's postseason coaches meeting.

The Vikings totaled three first-team selections, two second-team picks, and three honorable mention honors.

Leading the way for Long Beach was sophomore starting pitcher Steven Gallardo (Hamilton HS). Fresh off his 10-inning no-hitter in his final start of his LBCC career, Gallardo was an easy first-team selection. The 2011 SCC Pitcher of the Year led the conference with 69 strikeouts in 51 1/3 innings. He compiled a 4-3 record with an impressive 1.58 earned run average.

Sophomore Edwin Santiago (Jordan HS) was the Vikings' primary closer and late-inning relief pitcher. In 14 conference appearances, he had a 2.05 ERA with 24 strikeouts in 22 innings and totaled five saves. Santiago was an all-conference pick for LBCC as a freshman in 2010.

Sophomore infielder Justin Moore (University HS/Los Angeles) was an exciting playmaker for the Vikings' offense. Moore, playing primarily third base, led the conference with 12 stolen bases and 14 walks. He hit .319 with two triples, and seven RBI.

Earning second-team honors were freshman pitcher Jake Angus (Pacifica HS) and freshman catcher Jaime Valle (Paramount HS). Angus went 3-2 with a 2.16 ERA while Valle threw out 10 attempted base stealers and compiled a .988 fielding percentage.

Sophomore pitcher Danny Ittner (Lakewood HS), freshman pitcher David Aispuro (Jordan HS), and freshman infielder Nate Alcafaras (Wilson HS) were all honorable mention selections.

Long Beach closed the 2012 season with a 17-18 overall record. The Vikings finished fifth in the South Coast Conference standings at 11-10 and missed the playoffs.

Photos by Chris Ruiz