COSTA MESA – Vanguard baseball engaged in a pair of down-to-the-wire baseball games against Cal State LA on Saturday at Dean Harvey Field, and emerged with a split. The Lions pulled off the 5-4 comeback victory in game one, but fell 5-2 in extra innings in game two.

The Lions earned their first victory as an NCAA Division 2 program, and finished the three-game set against the Golden Eagles 1-2.

Josh Schleichardt and Noah Madole led the Lions offensively. Schleichardt went 4-for-9 with two runs scored, while Madole ended up 5-for-8 with three runs scored and three RBI. Madole also slammed VU's first home run of the year in game one.

Abe Hernandez had a pair of hits in game one, while Fred Buckson overcame a hitless game one to go 3-for-4 with an RBI in the nightcap.

The pitching star was Jesus Barreto, who tossed 5.0 solid innings of relief to get the win in game one. Jacob Cuculich had a phenomenal Lions debut with three shutout relief innings in game two.

The Lions posted nine hits in both games. VU pitchers issued six walks in each game.

What Happened?

Game 1 – Freshman catcher Angel Perez drew a bases loaded walk to score Schleichardt with the winning run in the bottom of the ninth inning.

The Lions trailed 4-3 entering their final at-bat with CSLA closer Joel Martinez on the mound. Leadoff man Evan Avitia drew a four pitch walk and Jarred Mazzaferro laid down a sac bunt to advance pinch runner Parker Sterton 90 feet. 

Down to their final out, the Lions stayed alive on consecutive infield singles by Schleichardt and Madole. On Madole's hit, Sterton hustled home on the third baseman's throw to first. Tristan Gallegos then walked to load the bases, setting up the battle with Perez, who fought off some pitches before earning the free pass.

Vanguard struck first with a run in the second on Hernandez's RBI knock, but quickly fell behind 3-1 in the third. Alberto Prado lashed a two-run homer to left for the big blow. CSLA also scored its first run in the inning after VU starter Jake Hiner issued walks to Kadyn Victorian and Javy Espinoza. A passed ball moved both runners up a base, and a throwing error by the VU catcher scored Victorian.

Hiner exited the game after 4.0 innings in favor of Barreto, who initially struggled with control. The Golden Eagles got Malik Clayton aboard with a single, and he came around to score via two wild pitches and a failed pickoff attempt at second.

Barreto was brilliant the rest of the way, retiring 10 straight Golden Eagles at one point and opening the door for a Lion comeback. With two outs in the fifth, Schleichardt laced a single through the left side, followed by Madole's two-run blast to pull the Lions within 4-3.

Both teams remained quiet offensively until VU's rally in the ninth.

Baretto logged 5.0 innings with just one hit allowed. He struck out five. Martinez took the loss as three walks and two hits led to the two VU runs.

Game 2 – The scheduled seven-inning affair took nine innings to complete in a pitcher's duel.

Chris Paruleski, a transfer from Saint Katherine, made his Lion debut and threw four effective innings. He scattered five hits and struck out five, while yielding just one walk and one run.

Lino Zepeda was also solid on the bump for the Golden Eagles. He threw 5.0 innings and fanned seven, surrendering six hits and two runs.

Vanguard used the momentum from the game one comeback victory to push across two runs in the first off Zepeda. Mazzaferro drew a leadoff walk and stole second – and with two outs scored on Madole's single to center. 

Buckson crushed a double into the right center alley that enabled Madole to score all the way from first for the 2-0 lead.

Cal State LA tied the game with a single run in both the fourth and fifth innings.

Cuculich entered in the sixth for his Blue and Gold debut. He allowed just a walk and a single to the 10 batters he faced, putting up zeroes in three straight innings.

Golden Eagle reliever Ismael Quintero was equally impressive, as he pitched four straight scoreless innings with four strikeouts. He did not walk a batter and scattered three hits.

The sixth inning was particularly fascinating after Schleichardt opened with a leadoff single. That chased Zepeda from the game for Quintero. Quintero threw to first at least a dozen times to keep Schleichardt close to the bag. He continued to throw to first after Madole and Tyler Shigenaka were retired on back-to-back fielder's choices.

The slow down strategy worked as Quintero struck out a VU batter to end the inning.

VU had a chance to score the winning run in the eighth as Schleichardt doubled to right. The outfielder attempted to stretch the hit into a triple, but was thrown out at third.

CSLA scored three in the ninth as Cesar Chavez had a leadoff double. The Golden Eagles loaded the bases via a single and an error. Two straight walks forced in a pair of runs and an RBI groundout plated the third.

Quintero allowed a leadoff hit to Buckson in the ninth, but he got the next three outs to earn the win.

Jacob Morales took the loss for the Lions.

What's Next?: VU welcomes Cedarville of Ohio next week for three games. The two teams play a single game on Friday at 1:00 p.m.