SANTEE, Calif. -- Vanguard baseball resumed Golden State Athletic Conference action Saturday with two more games against San Diego Christian. Game one was a wild affair that the Lions could not close out, falling 12-11 in 10 innings. Despite the loss, VU recovered and grabbed game two 4-1, sending Vanguard to 19-3 overall and 3-1 in GSAC play. SDCC falls to 5-20 overall and 2-6 in the conference.
What Happened? G1: The Lions could not score in the first inning, going down in order to start the game. The Hawks then attacked VU starter Tyler Armenta (SR/Anaheim, CA), with a double and a home run putting the hosts ahead 2-0. Another single put the Hawks ahead 3-0 heading into the top of the second. Dane Nakatsuka (JR/Laguna Niguel, CA) led off the frame with a double and he advanced to third on a fly-out to right. Kevin Miser (SR/Ridgefield, WA) then singled back up the middle to get the Lions on the board. Chad Sutton (SR/Scottsdale, AZ) reached on an error and Oscar Diaz (SO/Los Angeles, CA) followed that up with a single to center to make it 3-2 SDCC.
The Hawks went down quickly in the bottom of the second and the Lions followed suit in the top of the third. San Diego Christian then tagged two more runs on Armenta in the bottom of the third. A single, a double, and another single pushed the Hawks out to a 5-2 lead.
Aki Buckson (SR/Silverdale, WA) started the fourth with a double and Miser brought him home on a single to center. A walk to Sutton brought Diaz back to the plate and he would double down the right-field line. Sutton got on his horse and came around to score from first and make it 5-3. Travis Aversa (SR/Fountain Valley, CA) was hit by a pitch to put two aboard for Isaiah Lee (SR/Santa Ana, CA). Lee hit a ball to third that forced an error, with both Diaz and Aversa coming around to score. However, Lee tried to stretch his luck by going to second and he got gunned down from right field, but more importantly, VU took a 6-5 advantage.
The Hawks then tied the game in the home half of the fourth against new VU pitcher Toby Welty (SR/Colorado Springs, CO), as a grounder scored a runner from third. With a 6-6 game heading into the top of the fifth, Vanguard came to the plate looking for some more offense. Nakatsuka took a walk and stole second but that only matter for his stats, as Miser obliterated a ball over the left-field fence to put the Blue and Gold ahead 8-6.
Welty had a clean frame in the fifth and Jackson Webber (SR/Bothell, WA) came in to pitch in the bottom of the sixth to keep the Hawks from scoring, as he stranded runners at the corners. Nakatsuka again got the Lions going in the top of the seventh, as he went off for another double to start the inning. Sutton eventually cashed him in with a single to center to grow the VU lead to 9-6.
Welty gave one back in the bottom half, as a pair of walks and a wild pitch slimmed the lead to 9-7. That would also be the score heading into the top of the ninth inning, where the Lions scooped on a dollop of insurance. Sutton took a walk and Diaz tapped a single to center after that. A sac bunt got both to second and third and Aversa stroked a single to right to score two more and put Vanguard ahead 11-7.
Austin Brown (JR/Millbrae, CA) came to the mound to seal the win and he got two quick outs, lifting the VU spirits. But SDCC had other ideas. A triple started the rally, with a double and a single slimming the lead to 11-9. Jacob Morales (JR/Arcadia, CA) then was requested out of the pen and he issued a walk to load the bases. A single followed, which scored two more to tie the game at 11-11.
Vanguard went down in order in the top of the tenth and the Hawks came to the plate looking for the win. After two walks, Jared Greer (SR/Anaheim, CA) came on in relief but he gave up a single to the first batter he faced, as the Hawks walked off with the 12-11 victory.
The Lions scored 11 runs on 13 hits, had one error, and left 10 on base, while the Hawks scored 12 on 18 hits, had two errors, and left nine on base. Morales takes the loss to fall to 0-1. Armenta went three to start the day, giving up five runs on eight hits and striking out two. Nakatsuka had three hits and a walk in five at-bats. Miser had three hits and four RBI and Diaz had four hits and two RBI to pace the lineup.
G2: Both sides went down quietly in the first, as Jesus Munguia (SO/Anaheim, CA) and Luke Gentry started the game off smoothly. With one out in the top of the second, Aversa singled to right and Sutton slapped a single in his wake. A wild pitch pushed both runners up a base and Tommy Rodriguez (JR/Yucaipa, CA) delivered a single to left to score Aversa. Following him was Matthew Land (SR/Eugene, OR) and he hit a ball that plopped down right behind first to score Sutton and put the Lions ahead 2-0.
Munguia allowed the leadoff hitter in the second to reach on a single and he advanced to third on a sac-bunt. An error by Land allowed the runner to score but Mugia then got the third out on a lazy fly ball to left. No runs were scored in the third or fourth and the Blue and Gold got back to work in the top of the fifth.
Nakatsuka took a leadoff walk and then stole second. Buckson took a walk as well and Nakatsuka got to third off the fourth ball, which sailed to the backstop. Joe Johnson (SR/Medford, OR) then skied a ball to center but despite it being caught, it was deep enough for Nakatsuka to tag and score, putting VU up 3-1.
Munguia sailed through the bottom of the fifth and the Lions gave him one more run in the top of the sixth. Sutton doubled with one out and Land singled two batters later to bring the tally to 4-1. Munguia went the distance, giving up one hit in the sixth and one more in the seventh, but not allowing the Hawks to score again.
The Lions had four runs, nine hits, one error, and nine left on base in the 4-1 win. SDCC had one run on seven hits, no errors, and seven left on base. Munguia goes to 4-0 on the year, as he recorded two walks and five Ks for the game. Gentry falls to 0-1 for the Hawks. Aversa, Sutton, and Land each had two hits, with Land leading the way with two RBI.
Why is it Important? Vanguard is now 57-19 against SDCC all-time. The Lions do pick up three wins but the loss in the early game snaps what could be the longest win streak in program history at 16 victories in a row. VU is currently third in the GSAC, behind Hope International and Westmont, with a four-game set in hand.
What was Said? "We battled but didn't play complete baseball in game one," said Head Coach Rob Pegg. "Strong response in game two. Great effort on the mound by Mungia to get us some momentum. We need to keep growing as a team as we move forward and buy into the complete process."
What's Next? The Lions be at home against OAUZ for four games over Friday and Saturday, March 4-5, with the first game starting at 11:00 a.m. each day.
