Bobcats win in grand style
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Irvine Valley | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 12 | 2 |
|
Saddleback | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | X | 10 | 9 | 2 |
The Saddleback baseball team won its third straight game with a 10-5 victory over Irvine Valley College on Tuesday at Doug Fritz Field. The Bobcats exploded for seven runs in the sixth inning, highlighted by a grand slam.
Saddleback started quickly, scoring three runs in the bottom half of the first inning. The first three hitters in the lineup had hits and the Bobcats capitalized on a defensive miscue from the Lasers in grabbing the lead.
Unfortunately, Saddleback had just one hit over the next four innings as the lead slipped away and disappeared. Irvine Valley grabbed the momentum in the fifth inning when their bats came alive. The Lasers had five straight hits and six hits in the inning in chasing ace Connor Wilford from the game. Irvine Valley ended up scoring four times in taking a 4-3 lead, with the big blast being a double down the right field line by Casey Kudell.
Saddleback finally found its rhythm in the bottom half of the seventh inning when they put up a crooked number. The Bobcats sent 11 batters to the plate and had three hits in the inning, capitalizing on two hit-batsmen, a walk and an error. The big blow came with the bases loaded when Cole Koniarsky hit a towering shot over the left field wall. It was the fifth home run of the season for Koniarsky and gave the Bobcats a 10-4 lead.
Saddleback received another great effort from the bullpen. Joshua Meekins entered the game in the top half of the sixth inning and got out of a tough spot. He ended up pitching through the seventh inning in picking up his second win of the season. Jacob Juarez then came on to pitch the final two innings, holding the Lasers to one run while holding on to a big lead.
Saddleback is now 22-8 overall and 9-4 in Orange Empire Conference play. The Bobcats are now alone in first place after Riverside City College lost at Golden West College on Tuesday.
Saddleback and Irvine Valley will resume the series on Thursday at Irvine Valley (2:00 PM) before returning to Saddleback for the final game of the series on Friday (2:00 PM).