BASEBALL: TOO LITTLE TOO LATE
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Orange Coast | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 16 | 1 |
|
FULL | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 0 |
The baseball Hornets fell short of a comeback in the ninth inning losing to Orange Coast College 7-4 at home Saturday.
Offensively, the Pirates battered the FC pitching staff with 16 hits on the day scoring three runs a piece in the third and fourth innings and then a single run in the eighth.
OCC took advantage of some excellent pitching by their starter Dominic Purpura who, in six innings, held the Hornets scoreless allowing only 3 hits with 5 K's. Fullerton was then held in check by the Orange Coast relievers until the ninth inning.
Down 7-0 in the bottom of the ninth with two outs, the Hornets did their best to dig out of their hole and went to work. It all began with 3B Trent Hammond's single up the middle. With Hammond on first, catcher Garret Basehart was hit by a pitch. CF David Miranda then walked and loaded the bases. DH Riley Roberts hit a double to center field scoring Miranda, Basehart, and Hammond. LF John Orlando hit a single to center advancing Roberts to third. 2B Laine Huffman hit a shot through the left side of the field to score Roberts. SS Justin Row got on base hitting a single to the shortstop. With the bases loaded, RF Julio Rivera (one of FC's strongest hitters /.309 average) gave a great effort but struck out swinging to end the rally.
It was a rough Orange Empire Conference season series for Fullerton as they were swept by the Pirates three games to none. OCC outscored FC 19-8.
Saturday's loss will bump the Hornets down in the SoCal rankings where they sat in the number one spot for the past month. Fullerton's overall record and conference record now stand at 17-9 and 7-6 (tied third with Golden West), while the red hot Pirates are 19-9 overall and 10-3 in the OEC (first place).
Up Next: The Hornets will look to bounce back when they face off against two non-conference opponents this coming week. On Tuesday, March 31st Fullerton will host Compton College at 2:00 pm. Then on Wednesday, April 1st FC will host Taft College at 3:00 pm.
Photo by Ricardo Zapata