Cougar baseball was on the road Wednesday, earning a split with Vanguard University.  The Cougars took game one 7-4 before dropping game two 3-1.

A five-run seventh inning proved to be the difference in game one, which had been close up until that point.  Cougar ace Johnny Holtman was solid on the mound, throwing 6 1/3 innings and allowing four runs on nine hits.  He struck out two and walked one en route to picking up the win.

Early runs came courtesy of a Scott Clement RBI double and Ricardo Moran scoring on an error.

Vanguard held a 3-2 lead heading into that seventh inning, but that's when CSUSM went to work.  Moran and James Scott led off with singles, and Dane Ponciano blasted an RBI double.  After Clement drew a walk, Josh Miller knocked an RBI single.  After a double steal, Austin Coleman was intentionally walked to load the bases, and Juan Perez was promptly hit by a pitch to push a run home.  Mike Pena delivered the inning's final blow, a two-run base hit that pushed it to 7-3.

After Holtman departed with a 7-4 lead in the seventh, Eric Julienne took over on the mound, and he was outstanding.  Julienne threw 2 1/3 innings of scoreless one-hit ball before Spencer Pardon got the game's final out to close out the win.

Game two would prove to a be a pitcher's duel, with Travis McCracken doing excellent work on the mound for the Cougars.  McCracken allowed three runs in 5 2/3 innings of work, surrendering no walks and striking out five.

But while McCracken did his job, so did Vanguard starter Jordan Wishmyer.  The Cougars' powerful offense couldn't figure him out in the game's seven innings, scoring just one run on a fourth-inning solo homer by Scott.  CSUSM would fall 3-1 in the end.

The Cougars will play a double-header a La Sierra on Friday.