GRITTY HORNETS VICTORIOUS OVER VIKINGS
The Hornet baseball squad pulled off a come-from-behind win at home Thursday afternoon rallying past Long Beach City College 12-9.
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 14 | 3 |
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0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 2 | X | 12 | 15 | 4 |
The Hornet baseball squad pulled off a come-from-behind win at home Thursday afternoon rallying past Long Beach City College 12-9.
With the win, Fullerton improves to 4-3 on the season, while Long Beach drops to 2-6.
After a rough first inning, the Hornets were staring down a 7-0 deficit, but the team never gave up erupting for a decisive five-run third inning that flipped the game setting the tone for the rest of the afternoon.
Luke Viola jump-started the rally with an RBI walk that was followed by a sacrifice fly from Sean Green. Hunter Billingsley delivered a run-scoring single, and RBI base hits from Carlos Barrios and Vinny Hudson capped the surge as the Hornets closed the gap to 8-5.
Fullerton stayed on the attack in the sixth inning. Diego Vazquez blasted a two-run homer to left field pulling the Hornets within two at 9-7. Moments later, Billingsley came through again with an RBI single to make it a one-run game.
The decisive blow came in the seventh. Vazquez struck again with an RBI single, and Fullerton took advantage of defensive miscues to push across two more runs and claim a 10-9 lead they would not relinquish. The Hornets added insurance in the eighth on an RBI double from Carlos Barrios and an RBI single by Jake Starr extending the margin to 12-9.
Offensively, Fullerton piled up 15 hits, led by Nate Pone, who went 3-4 at the plate with two runs scored. Vazquez finished with 3 RBI, while Billingsley and Barrios each drove in 2 RBI. Hudson, Green, and Starr also chipped in key hits during the comeback.
On the mound, the Hornets bullpen slammed the door after a rough opening inning. Matthew McCliman earned the win with 2 strong innings of relief, allowing just one hit and no runs. Murdoch Taylor closed out the game to earn the save, striking out 2 in a clean ninth.
Up Next: The Hornets (4-3 overall) will get back at it again tomorrow (Friday, Feb. 6) when Palomar College (5-1) comes to town for another non-conference matchup. Game time is at 1:00 pm.
