The562’s coverage of Millikan Athletics for the 2025-26 school year is sponsored by Brian Ramsey and TLD Law.
The562’s coverage of Long Beach Poly Athletics for the 2025-26 school year is sponsored by Former Jackrabbits Wendell “WoWo” Moe, Jr. & Tyson Ruffins.
The first meeting between Millikan (11-2, 5-0) and Long Beach Poly (8-2, 5-1) was delayed two weeks due to heat, and that only allowed anticipation to build between the top two teams in the Moore League.
The Rams and Jackrabbits put on a quality display on Tuesday evening at Millikan High, and once again it was the reigning league champs showing why they’ve been so tough to beat the past few years.
Millikan got a solid performance from senior Riley McAndrew in the circle, and showed they could score in a variety of ways en route to a 4-1 victory, their 34th win in a row against Moore League competition.
“Riley did a great job. Her velo was a little down yesterday and today, and I think that really comes down to the fact that she’s literally not pitched for over 18 months,” said Millikan head coach Michelle Lehr of her second baseman turned starting pitcher. “But she still did a great job spinning the ball. Riley throws every pitch you could think of: rise balls, drop balls, screwball, curveball, changeup on both sides of the plate. By having that many options, they really don’t know what’s coming at them … So I think the ability to call anything and for her to deliver it is what put us in a good spot.”
McAndrew walked the first two batters of the game, being cautious against Poly’s top two hitters Persjah Lam Sam and Emoni Lam Sam. Later in the first, Persjah would come in to score thanks to a wild pitch and an RBI groundout from Janelle Morris, giving the visiting Jackrabbits an early lead.
But that’s the only run she would allow, as she did a nice job stranding runners and limiting the Jackrabbits to just four singles on the day. McAndrew walked three and struck out eight in her complete game performance.
“I definitely felt a little more comfortable towards the end, just more confident in my stuff, not so much like the batters I’m pacing and everything, but just in myself. I knew that I just had to trust myself a little bit more, and I was able to do that towards the end of the game.”
After the Jackrabbits stranded five runners on base through the first four innings, McAndrew allowed just two singles over the last three frames to keep Poly stuck at one run. This was the first time Poly’s high-powered offense has scored fewer than 10 runs during Moore League play. The Jackrabbits had averaged 17 runs per game in their previous five league games.
Offensively, Millikan broke through in the third as leadoff hitter Mia Meza slapped a single through the left side of the infield. That’s when the Rams turned to small ball, having Kayla Cisneros lay down a bunt with Meza on the move. That allowed the speedy leadoff hitter to go from first base to third base with just one out.
Next up was Lauryn Kim, who laid down a squeeze bunt that allowed Meza to dive in from third to tie the game. As the throw to the plate got away, Kim moved up to second base where she was in scoring position for Addy Everett. The senior smacked a ground rule double to left center, putting the Rams in front, 2-1.
Everett was back in the sixth to start another two-run rally for Millikan, opening the inning with a double on the first pitch she saw.
“She was pitching me all outside my first at-bat,” said Everett, who was a strikeout victim in the first inning before making an adjustment at the plate. “And I was off the line, so then I realized, just go on the line, hog it, and inside turn on it. So then my next two at-bats, she pitched me inside, and then I just turned on them.”
After she was replaced by pinch-runner Liana Lopez, McAndrew drew a walk to put two Rams on base. Two batters later, Peyton Dobrovolny sent a ball to the opposite field to score Lopez, then got into a rundown that allowed McAndrew to score as well, giving the Rams their decisive 4-1 advantage.
Everett and Hailey Fematt each had a pair of hits to pace the Millikan offense, and Kim, Everett and Dobrovolny each delivered one RBI.
On the Poly side, Persjah Lam Sam had a single and two walks at the top of the order while also playing great defense in center field. Not only did she make a fine running catch to help limit Millikan’s rally in the third, she also made a nice throw to the plate in the first inning to deny Kim an RBI and get Kayla Cisneros at the plate as she attempted to score the tying run for Millikan.
The Rams are now alone in first place in the league standings and will have their rematch against the Jackrabbits at El Dorado Park on April 16.