It must have been strange for Josh Thomas, watching from behind the plate as his Righetti High baseball team give up nine runs in the top half of the first inning against Arroyo Grande last Thursday.

But Thomas did what he could to get the Warriors back in the game, and what ended up happening was as unlikely as it was incredible.

Righetti clawed back all of that nine-run deficit and ended up with a 10-9 victory, thanks in part to Thomas/ day at the plate, going 3-for-4 with a two-run homer and three RBIs.

"The great thing about it was, when the kids came off the field after that first inning, there wasn/t any sense of panic," Warrior coach Eric Albright said during Monday/s Northern Santa Barbara County Athletic Roundtable luncheon. "Everyone came in, and there was a kind of comfortable feeling, like /Hey, let/s get a couple here, a couple there, and we/ll get back in./"

Thomas was even involved in the game/s winning run, taking first on a dropped third strike and watching as teammate Jimmy Dodos scampered home on an Eagle throwing error.

"I have to say it was probably the best game I/ve played in my life," said the senior, who recently signed to play college ball at San Jose State. "It was just a great week."

That week of fun continued with the rematch the next day in Arroyo Grande. This time around, Thomas made sure there was no repeat of Thursday/s escapades, as Thomas allowed four runs on eight hits and struck out eight in the Warriors/ 9-4 victory, putting them atop the PAC-5 League standings heading into the final stretch of the regular season.

"Hopefully, it was one of those games that brings the team together and gets us into a groove for the rest of the season," Albright said.

For his efforts against Arroyo Grande, Thomas was given the Roundtable/s Male Athlete of the Week award.

Female Athlete of the Week went to Lompoc softball pitcher Ashley McDonough, who pitched the Braves to a pair of very important Los Padres League victories. In the two wins, McDonough allowed one earned run on four hits and collected 22 strikeouts in the two games.

"I just want to thank my coach (Al DeMaria) for his help," McDonough said. "And I have to thank my catcher, Christy (Blea)."

RIGHETTI

Joining Albright at the luncheon was softball coach Richard Cornejo and players Natalie Estorga and Kelsey Anderson, herself an Athlete of the Week winner two weeks ago.

Cornejo brought up the fact that the Warriors, still in the thick of the PAC-5 League race, are still looking at several more games thanks to late-season tournaments.

"We/ve got nine games to go," Cornejo said. "We/ve definitely got a lot of softball in front of us for the next two weeks."

ST. JOSEPH

The Knights were well-represented at the luncheon, with track coach Greg Sarkisian bringing senior sprinter Alyssa Agin, one of the best in the LPL over the short distances.

"It/s rare when a girl finishes off four years and is still at the top of her game," said Sarkisian of Agin, joined at the luncheon by freshman Julio Ortega. "She/s been able to do that, which is wonderful."

Golf coach Eddie Murry was joined by Ryan McConnell and John Kuczkowski and spoke of the team clinching the LPL title early in the schedule.

"This year/s been fun Š I don/t know about next year, but this year/s been a good one," said Murry, who also said he would like to see McConnell and Kuczkowski reach the CIF individual tournament. "I/d like to see us get on a roll and do well in CIF, but it/s tough because they only take two teams (after the first round)."

Assistant softball coach Angeli Guerrero, daughter of coach Greg Guerrero and a regular at the Roundtable, brought starters Jessica Perez and Jaimey Kleinsmith off a team that used a big win over Cabrillo last week to vault back into the LPL title hunt.

Keith Lorenz brought Greg McCaffrey, Charlie Sheaff and Matt Segura off the Knights/ volleyball team.

VALLEY CHRISTIAN

Softball coach Stan Bickley was joined by the sister team of Christine and Cynthia Regalado: Freshman pitcher Christine has twirled five no-hitters this season, while junior catcher Cynthia is currently hitting .491 for the season.

"We/re having a great season right now," Bickley said. "This may be the strongest team we/ve had in a while, so we/re looking forward to the rest of the year."

SANTA MARIA

Athletic director Ralph Baldiviez was on hand on behalf of Mia Ituralde/s softball program, represented by senior shortstop Valerie DeLosSantos.

Aaron Fischer was also on hand to wrap up the Saints/ volleyball program, a group that Fischer felt had made significant improvements over the course of the season.

LOMPOC

Athletic director Dick Barrett spoke on behalf of McDonough and Blea, along with Laura Covarrubias and Scott Jackson off the Braves/ successful track teams.

CABRILLO

Coach Mary Beth Stieber was joined from the Conquistadores/ LPL-leading softball team by starters Candice Chotirmal and Natalia Martin.

May 4, 2004