COMEBACK VICTORY AGAINST SANTA ANA
The Hornet baseball squad welcomed Santa Ana College to the FC campus on Saturday afternoon and blew past the 13-8 Dons thanks to a late offensive explosion.
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 14 | 2 |
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0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 5 | X | 13 | 13 | 0 |
The Hornet baseball squad welcomed Santa Ana College to the FC campus on Saturday afternoon and blew past the 13-8 Dons thanks to a late offensive explosion.
After dropping the first two of the three-game series vs. first place Santa Ana, Fullerton handed the Dons their first Orange Empire Conference loss at 8-1. FC is now 5-4 in the OEC riding in the middle of the pack tied for fourth with Riverside City.
The game itself did not begin very well for the Hornets, who fell behind 3-0 after the second inning. Fullerton got a run back in the bottom of the third when Diego Vazquez reached on a bunt for a fielder's choice giving Jake Starr the chance to sprint home.
The fourth inning was all Dons as the team ripped off three more runs for a 6-1 lead. The Hornets did not fold under the mounting pressure. In fact, it was quite the opposite as Fullerton exploded in the fourth, fifth and sixth innings with 7 unanswered runs to take an 8-6 lead.
The Dons scored a run in the seventh to pull within a run at 8-7 on Christian Altamirano's double to left field that plated Jack Mueller.
Fullerton took control of the game in the bottom of eighth. With the bases loaded, Trevor Schimdt worked the count for a walk and RBI. Derek Anderson then rocked a double to right field scoring Jake Larson and Nate Pone. Erik Polanco came in doubling to center field plating Anderson and Schmidt giving Fullerton a healthy 13-7 adavantage.
Santa Ana managed to get one more runs across in the top of the ninth before FC reliever Will Valenzuela earned the final out.
Sage Nelson got the start on the bump for the Hornets going 3.1 innings with 9 hits, 6 runs, no walks, and 1 K. Manny Lopez earned the win throwing 3.2 innings with 2 hits against, 1 run, had no walks, and 3 Ks. Will Valenzuela finished off the final two innings with 3 hits, 1 run, no walks, and a strikeout.
Up Next: Fullerton (15-13 overall, 5-4 OEC) will begin a new three-game OEC series at Riverside City College this Tuesday, April 1st. Game time is at 2:00 pm.
