ALMOST THERE

The No. 11 (SoCal) Hornets wrapped up the regular season at home Friday with a close 6-4 loss against No. 7 Santa Ana College.

It was a tough defeat for the Hornets who are battling to get into the SoCal Regional Playoffs, however the team's recent win streak should secure a spot.

Santa Ana took a 1-0 lead in the top of the second when Matthew Dobson hit a SAC Fly to right giving Mikey Rocha the chance to cross home plate.

FC went up 2-1 in the bottom of the second. Jimmy Blumberg hit a sharp single to the left side scoring Isaiah Marquez and Landon Runge hit a shot to left field scoring Jared Benash.

Santa Ana pushed back with a 3-2 lead in the third inning on Austin Haller's single to left field that plated Christian Thompson. Rocha reached first on a Hornet fielding error allowing Eddie Pelc to come home.

On an absolute tear lately, Britton Beeson came up in the sixth inning hitting his 11th home run over left field scoring Tank Espalin and himself. Beeson has hit 7 dingers in the last 8 games (22 RBI). This was his fifth straight. 

The Hornet's 4-3 lead did not hold up as Rocha's singled to right field tied the game up in the seventh.

A Fullerton error in the eighth and a solo homer by Rocha in the ninth sealed the game and series for the Dons.

Freddy Castaneda got the start for FC throwing 6 solid innings with 2 earned runs, 4 walks, and 5 K's. Ryan Chavez took the loss going three innings with 2 earned runs, a walk, and 3 strikeouts.

Up Next: The Hornets (21-19 overall, 9-12 OEC) will find out soon where their slotted for the SoCal Playoffs beginning next week.

*Photo by Matt Brown