Costa Mesa, CA---Six games into the 2010 GSAC schedule, there is only one conference team with an unblemished record. That team is Vanguard University, who dropped The Master's College 4-3 on Thursday to remain unbeaten in conference play. The Lions, winners of nine straight contests, have used timely hits and solid pitching efforts to boost Vanguard into first place in the early-season GSAC standings.
VUSC sent left-hander
Jason Dovel to the bump against The Master's, hoping to beat the visiting Mustangs for the second time in as many days. TMC countered with David Goodenough, and the two starters pitched very well for their respective clubs.
The Mustangs drew first blood, as second baseman Joe Zeller hammered a Dovel offering over the left field wall to put TMC up 1-0. Vanguard bounced back with two runs in the bottom of the fifth, on back-to-back bombs by catcher
Kip Masuda and designated hitter
Eric Krzysiak. Nursing a 2-1 lead, Dovel took the mound in the seventh. However, an error allowed a Mustang runner to advance to third, and a sac fly by Nick Jorgensen plated the tying run. The score remained tied until the eighth, when VU pitcher Mike Anderson, who had relieved Dovel in the seventh, ran into trouble. The senior gave up two straight doubles, and The Master's reclaimed the lead 3-2.
As the Lions have done so many times before already this season, the Blue and Gold bounced back quickly. Only five outs away from the first conference loss of the season, Vanguard responded in the eighth. With one out, captain
Keegan Freeman singled and advanced to second on a wild pitch. After a
Jacob Wood single, second baseman
Brandon Pesante followed with another single, scoring Freeman and tying the game. Pesante's base knock rattled Mustang pitcher Trent Abbot, who had come in to pitch the eighth. Abbot was wild on his next pitch, and Wood scampered home from third. After TMC got out of the inning, the visiting squad had one more chance to tie the game and send it to extra innings. However, VU's
Peter Birdwell shut down the Mustangs, sealing the 4-3 win for the Lions.
Dovel, who has pitched well in 2010, performed superbly once again, giving up only one earned run through 6.2 innings of work, earning the win. Abbot took the loss for TMC. Vanguard improved to 15-1 on the season, and 6-0 in GSAC play. TMC dropped to 9-7, 3-3 in conference play. The two team will meet twice more on Saturday at 11:00 a.m., in a double header hosted by The Master's.
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