On a beautiful day for baseball, Saguaro and Casteel had their moments in the sun.

Both programs opened the 16-team 2024 Boras Classic with impressive victories. Saguaro shutout the tournament’s defending champ, Bishop Gorman, 6-0, and 5A Casteel’s Wednesday morning affair against 6A Liberty also went its way, 10-4, at Corona del Sol.

In front of a bevy of scouts, one of the nation’s top left-handed pitchers, Saguaro’s Cam Caminiti, wowed once again. A week after striking out the first 16 batters in a game, the senior fanned nine in five innings before exiting due to pitch count.

But reliever Christopher Margarella pitched the final two frames to preserve the one-hitter against a roster with seven Division I stars.

“We knew who they (Bishop Gorman) were, but we just focused on ourselves and stayed within ourselves,” Caminiti said. “We know who we got on our team, and we are ready to compete with anyone.”

The senior was backed by a five run third inning, when New Mexico State commit Cade Shumard (two hits, 3 RBIs) blasted a three-run homer over the left field fence off of South Carolina-bound righty Henry Prindl.

“Oh, man,” said Shumard, “the first at-bat I was on him. I was just in the box. I was like, ‘I’m going to get this guy again.’ I knew what he was going to throw. I saw everything well. He gave me that high inside fastball, and I just went to work.”

Trailing 4-3, Casteel also had a big inning when it sent 12 batters to the plate in the sixth, scoring seven runs to pull away from Peoria power Liberty.

Only one of Casteel's 12 hits went for extra bases. But that hit cleared the bases in the sixth inning.

It came off the bat of an Arizona commit, catcher Kade Thompson, who went 3-for-4.

 

“We’re a special squad,” said Thompson about the defending 5A championship. “Half of our team has actually been playing on the same teams since we’ve been in fifth or sixth grade. I believe our team chemistry is the most important thing about us. We know how to handle the ups and downs.

“I truly believe that if we do what we’re supposed to do we have a good chance of going back-to-back.”

Saguaro (9-2) and Casteel (6-1) will attempt to keep their Boras Classic title hopes alive when they see each other Thursday.

It'll be a battle between two of the state’s top teams regardless of class.

Casteel coach Matt Denny went over all the things his team did right Wednesday. In the first round of the Boras Classic, Denny faced a former Grand Canyon teammate, Chris Raymond, Liberty's coach. (Jose Garcia/azpreps365)