COSTA MESA, Calif. – Senior Ian Sakry (Long Beach, Calif.) recorded the Lions' lone multi-hit game, going 2-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored on Friday as Vanguard upset No. 22 San Diego Christian in the first game of the two-day Golden State Athletic Conference baseball series.
The Blue and Gold improve to 10-6 overall and 5-5 in league play with the victory.
Friday's game began with a pitching duel between junior Marshall McKinnon (Los Gatos, Calif.) and SDCC's Mark Vasquez (San Diego, Calif.) as both hurlers led their respective squads through the opening inning unscathed.
In the second, however, Vanguard's offense notched a trio of runs off of two hits and a Hawks' error to tally a 3-0 edge early.
Senior Thomas Mobley (Anaheim, Calif.) led off the frame with a single, which senior John Schwer (Burbank, Calif.) followed with a walk to put two on for junior Taylor McKnight (Mission Viejo, Calif.).
McKnight reached on a sacrifice bunt, fielder's choice and Sakry found himself staring at loaded bases from the plate.
The pressure didn't phase the Lions' first baseman, as Sakry roped a single to left next to score his classmates, Mobley and Schwer.
McKnight added VU's third run as he advanced on a fielder's choice by senior Greg Younger (Bakersfield, Calif.) and scored on an SDCC mishap.
In the third, senior catcher John Collins (Fallbrook, Calif.) took over defensively, coming up with two outs as he threw out David Johnson and Cade Gotta on steal attempts.
Vanguard added another run in the third via a Schwer RBI single, but the fourth saw the Hawks cut the margin to two runs at 4-2 as Taylor Eichhorst and Peter Hoyt brought runs in for San Diego Christian.
The Pride responded in the bottom of the frame with two of its own, coming up with three knocks to garner a 6-2 advantage.
Senior Nick Rodda (Santa Rosa, Calif.) recorded the Blue and Gold's RBIs in the fourth with a single to left, bringing in Sakry and J. Collins, who reached on hits of their own.
The Hawks got a homerun from Gotta in the fifth and managed another in the sixth to come within two (8-6), but McKinnon and senior Eddie Rivera (Anaheim, Calif.) closed out the contest despite a one-run scare in the ninth to hand SDCC its fourth loss of the year.
McKinnon earned the win on the mound and moves to 2-0, while Rivera picked up his first save of 2014.
The Lions return to action against the Hawks on Saturday beginning at 11:00 am.
-GOLDPRIDE-
