Gauchos ride Carr to big win

The Saddleback baseball team improved to 9-3 with a 12-0 win against Palomar College on Tuesday at Doug Fritz Field.  The Gauchos dominated from start-to-finish, riding the arm of pitcher Bradon Carr.

Saddleback and Palomar started the day by finishing up a game that had started on February 5.  The game had a wild ending as Saddleback carried a 15-9 lead into the bottom half of the eighth inning, where the game picked up.  Palomar opened the game with the bases loaded and managed to push across seven runs in taking a 16-15 lead.  The Gauchos bounced back with two runs in the top half of the ninth inning in reclaiming the lead, 17-16.  They finished off the Comets when Jaiston Cabatbat lined back to the pitcher Andrew Herbert with runners on base.  Herbert snagged the ball out of the air and quickly threw the ball to first base to end the game with a double-play. 

Game two could not have been any different.  The Gauchos scored runs in five of the first seven innings in running away and hiding from the Comets.  Saddleback received a stellar performance on the mound from Carr, who pitched through the sixth inning in picking up his first win of the year.  Carr spread around three hits while striking out four in what was easily one of the better pitching performances of the year for the Gauchos.  He eventually turned the ball over to Connor Wilford and Aaron Barokas, who allowed no hits over the final three innings.

Saddleback opened the scoring in the bottom half of the second inning when Dylan Smith singled home Antonio Vultaggio with a two-out single to center field.  It was the beginning of a big night for Smith, who later hit a towering home run to left-center field that gave the Gauchos a 10-0 lead. 

As good as Smith was at the plate, everyone paled in comparison to Carson Matthews.  The sophomore from Capistrano Valley Christian High School finished a perfect 5-for-5 on the night while scoring three runs of his own.  Matthews raised his average 76 points with the performance and is now hitting .409 for the year. 

Saddleback will play again on Wednesday when they host Grossmont College.  The first pitch is scheduled for 5:30 PM at Doug Fritz Field.