SANTEE, Calif. – Grossmont College was the site of a doozy of a contest as the 22nd ranked Lions rallied back for a 6-3 victory in extra innings over San Diego Christian (8-6, 4-3). Vanguard sits atop the GSAC with a 12-4, 5-2 record as the two teams entered the day tied for first place in conference.
Jose Rojas (SR/Anaheim, CA) was nearly flawless as he finished the day 4-5 at the plate including two runs batted in and a run scored on the base paths. Sam Neufeld (FR/Indio, CA) recorded a 2-5 day with a scored run. On Brock Eissman (JR/San Clemente, CA)'s lone hit of the day he drove in two runs.
"We found a way to get it done. Pitching and defense gave us a chance and we scrapped enough runs," Head Coach Rob Pegg concluded.
Kicking off the game, the Lions hopped out to a quick 1-0 in their first at bat. However, the Hawks were not phased and answered right back three outs later. The deadlocked game continued into the bottom of the fourth inning before that was broken by a homerun from SDCC's right fielder.
Picking things up at the start of the eighth inning, the Pride found themselves trailing by a 3-2 count but Rojas fixed that by driving in Paul Keating (SR/Oceanside, CA) from second base. The score would go unchanged through the end of regulation and forced extra innings, better known as free baseball!
Rojas remarked, "This team has what it takes to be great and when something needed to get done we found a way to do that. Today we refused to lose and we held the rope for one another till the end."
Vanguard took advantage of four hits and an error from the Hawks to generate three runs and grab a commanding lead of the game. Michael Jordan (SR/Murrieta, CA) entered the game and struck out the first batter before forcing the final two hitters into a ground out and fly out situation.
Sean Isaac (SR/Redondo Beach, CA) started his traditional first game of the series and left the contest after 6.1 innings. He received no decision despite striking out 13 batters. Michael Ostrea (SR/Buena Park, CA) earned the win by pitching the interim 2.2 innings before Jordan entered for the save opportunity.
Tomorrow, February 27th, the two teams will be right back on the same field for the conclusion of the weekend series. The action starts at 11:00 a.m. with Ryan Heinle (SR/Stockton, CA) scheduled to start on the hill for the Blue and Gold.
-GOLD PRIDE-
