COSTA MESA -- The offenses were the main story on Friday at McBean Park, as Vanguard baseball ended the Pacific West Conference doubleheader against Jessup with a win and a loss. The Lions won game one 16-10, the most runs the Vanguard bats have scored since the team had 16 or more runs three times during the 2024 campaign. However, Jessup pulled out a 9-4 victory, putting VU at 4-4 overall and Jessup at 3-2, with each side starting at 1-1 in league play.
What Happened? The offenses exploded for 26 runs, with VU going ahead 1-0 in the top of the first.
Tyler Shigenaka took a leadoff walk and he got to third on an infield error a play later. A deep out by
Colton Perez brought home Shigenaka home, but JU slotted home six runs in the bottom of first to surge ahead. Yet the Blue and Gold answered with six of their own in the top of the second.
Tristan Gallegos,
Nathan Hellein, and
Joshua Sur netted consecutive singles to load up the bases to start the inning, and
Evan Avitia joined the group to tally an RBI. Shigenaka worked a walk to make it 6-3, and
James Derflinger blasted a double to score one more, cutting the gap to 6-4. An error by Jessup on a grounder by
Jaxson Davis allowed two more runs to cross the plate and level the score. After that, Gallegos had his second hit of the inning, as his double launched the Lions ahead 7-6. Yet two Warrior runs in the bottom of the third handed the home side an 8-7 edge, with a run in the bottom of the fourth making it 9-7.
VU used two four-spots, in the top of the fifth and eighth, to pull away from Jessup and take game one. Gallegos homered to open the fifth, and after a Hellein single, Sur tattooed a ball over the fence to send Vanguard ahead 10-9. Shigenaka got aboard on a one-out single, and after a bunt got him to second, he raced home on a Davis single to put Vanguard up 11-9.
In the top of the eighth, Gallegos was hit by a pitch, and Hellein reached on a fielder's choice. Sur slapped a single into left field to score one, with a sacrifice fly by Avitia allowing Hellein to tag and score. Shigenaka then mashed his first home run to make the VU lead grow to 15-9. A JU home run made it 15-10 after the end of the eighth, but the Lions had one more run in the tank. Perez was hit by a pitch to open the ninth, and a two-out double by Hellein made it 16-10, which was the final score.
The Blue and Gold scored 16 runs on 19 hits and left 10 runners left on base. JU had 10 runs, 12 hits, three errors, and 10 runners left aboard.
Daniel Rivera got his first win of the year, as he replaced
Caden Byers, who lasted 3.1 innings after getting the start.
Tyler Prystajko had four strikeouts, as did
Braden Turner.
Hellein was 4-for-6, and Sur, Gallegos, and Derflinger were 3-for-5. Shigenaka and Sur led the Lions with three RBI each.
Game 2
Seth Wrightstone got the nod for the second contest, which started later in the day due to the first game going long. He got six outs in a row, and the offense rewarded him with a run in the top of the third, which came with two outs. Avitia held steady at the plate for a walk, as did Shigenaka. Derflinger hit a grounder, but all three Lions slid in safely to load up the bases, with an RBI coming for Gallegos as the next hitter after he was hit by a pitch.
However, the Warriors used a VU error and three singles to flip ahead 2-1, with two doubles and a single putting the advantage at 3-1 in the bottom of the fourth. Unfortunately, the Warriors piled on seven runs in total in the frame, surging ahead 9-1. The Blue and Gold tried to formulate a rally in the top of the seventh, with Shigenaka launching a three-run home run, but that was all the Lions could muster.
JU had nine runs on 10 hits and left seven on the base paths, while VU had four runs on two hits, two errors, and left five aboard. Wrighstone lasted three and a third, fanning two, with
Dakota Henson covering the final portion of the game.
What's Next? Vanguard returns to the field for an 11:00 a.m. doubleheader.
