Football/Baseball:
By Brian Reed-Baiotto, Sports Editor
Jack Van Cleve is a winner.
The last time he got to play a full baseball season (2019), the Rio Hondo Prep right-hander got the save in the CIF-SS Division 6 title-game victory over Costa Mesa, 9-7.
Van Cleve went two scoreless innings at UC Riverside to close out the school’s first baseball championship.
He also went 2-for-3 at the plate, including a double and two RBI’s.
Both Van Cleve and Evan Foor had six wins apiece on the mound to pace the Kares pitching staff, and his .314 average was third to seniors Jake Lang (.434) and Evan Foor (.395), respectively.
Last year, Van Cleve’s junior football season was a huge success.
The 6-foot, 195-pound quarterback completed 49 of 102 passes for 850 yards.
He threw for 12 TD’s and was picked just once all season.
The Kares won the first 10 games of that 2019 season before losing at Jurupa Hills, 36-29, in the second round of the CIF-SS Division 12 playoffs.
Among those 10 victories, it was a 28-21 triumph on November 1 at Poly that claimed the Prep League championship.
His numbers would obviously be much higher, but the RHP offense runs the ball approximately 85-percent of the time.
He’s also a great teammate.
As long as the Kares are winning football games, Jack Van Cleve is a happy dude.
This writer went down to RHP on Tuesday evening and had a conversation with Van Cleve, his coach and a pair of teammates for this story.
The subjects obviously included the challenges of COVID-19, doing all you can do within the rules and how things are going considering at this time last year, he’d be preparing for Friday night games.
We spoke with juniors Jonathan Guerrero and Gio Ortega about the upcoming season and what they expect from their senior quarterback.
Guerrero had a breakout season, and only got his shot after senior Bryant Flores got injured.
Guerrero rushed for 1,311 yards and 17 TD’s, which included an average of more than 10 yards per carry.
Ortega rushed for 195 yards on 16 carries, including four TD runs.
Ortega led the Kares receiving corps with17 catches for 375 yards and seven TD’s.
Lastly is a conversation with RHP coach Mark Carson about the uncertainty that this pandemic has brought on, what Van Cleve’s role will evolve into and what they can do within the rules to stay sharp before official practices kick off in December.
Jack Van Cleve’s career stats at RHP:
Baseball:
2020:
Batting: .167, two hits, eight runs, four RBI’s, home run
Pitching: 2-0, 5.25 ERA, 16 IP, three walks, 21 strikeouts
2019:
Batting: .314, 22 hits, 18 runs, 20 RBI’s, nine doubles, triple
Pitching: 6-3, 2.02 ERA, 55 1/3 IP, 18 walks, 63 stikeouts
2018:
Batting: .242, 15 hits, 11 runs, 14 RBI’s, six doubles
Pitching: 3-2, 3.00 ERA, 39 2/3 IP, 20 walks, 39 strikeouts
RHP Baseball Records:
2020: 3-4 overall, 2-1 in league
2019: 18-7, 6-6 (CIF-SS Division 6 champions)
2018: 12-8, 8-4
Football:
2019: 49 of 102 for 850 yards, 12 TD’s, one INT
2018: 2 of 3 for 15 yards, 0 TD, one INT, 16 catches for 297 yards & four TD’s
2017: 1 of 1 for 23 yards, TD
RHP Football Records:
2019: 10-1, 3-0 (Prep League champs)
2018: 7-4, 2-1
2017: 7-4, 2-1
To see the Van Cleve photo gallery, click the link here: Facebook
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