Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2
Cougar baseball traveled up to #3-ranked Cal Baptist on Saturday looking to avenge a tough 2-0 loss at home on Friday, but instead suffered a pair of very difficult defeats, 4-3 in game one and 10-9 in game two.
CSUSM is now 6-4 on the year. Cal Baptist improves to 10-1.
In game one, CSUSM was undone by one bad inning, and unfortunately unable to recover. The Cougars started strong, scoring in the first inning on a Kyle Secciani base hit that drove in Victor Serna.
The 1-0 lead help up through a good chunk of the game, with starting pitcher Johnny Holtman cruising through the first five innings. The big senior righty has been great so far this season, and started off strong again on Saturday.
The Cougars added two more in the sixth and looked to be on their way to a huge win. Marco Arellano doubled with one out, and Johnny Omahen traded places with him after knocking a double himself to left-center. Trent Jemmett then drove Omahen home with a base hit, putting the Cougars up 3-0.
But things would go south in the bottom of the frame. With two outs and nobody on, a hit-by-pitch turned out to be costly, as Cal Baptist rattled off two singles, a triple, and a double to drive Holtman from the game and take a 4-3 lead.
Though Kyle Smart did an admirable job of keeping the score close by throwing 2 1/3 scoreless innings, the Cougar lineup couldn't close the gap as CSUSM fell 4-3.
After being stifled for the first two games of the series, the Cougar lineup would waste no time making a statement in game two.
Leading off the game, Omahen singled, and Mike Mecucci drove him home with a double. Austin Coleman followed that up with an RBI base hit of his own, Kevin Silvett singled, and Kyle Secciani drove in the next run with a base hit. Ryle Parks then plated pinch runner Corey McCloskey with a sac fly, and after an Anthony Renteria single, Jeremy Baum capped off the inning with a two-run double to left-center that put the Cougars up 6-0.
When Silvett drove home Coleman with a base hit in the top of the second, it looks like the rout was on. But it's a long game, and the #3-ranked Lancers were far from out of it.
CBU scored one in the second, three in the third, one in the fourth, and four in the fifth to take a 9-7 lead. Relief pitcher Matt Bataska stopped the bleeding with two scoreless innings, allowing the Cougars to tie it up in the eighth as Silvett and Secciani drew consecutive bases loaded walks with two outs. Johnny Omahen worked a scoreless eighth on the mound as well.
But the Lancers would close it out in the ninth, as Sharif Othman was hit by an Omahen pitch with the bases loaded to force home the game winning run as CBU took the contest 10-9.
It's a tough sweep for the Cougars to swallow, as the squad lost all three games in the series by a combined four runs. CSUSM will look to bounce back next week against Point Loma on Tuesday.
