Eduardo Miranda
The Daily Independent
The Cerro Coso baseball team hosted and defeated Barstow College 20-5 in an Inland Empire Athletic Conference match on Saturday, April 1st. The win puts the Coyotes in third place in their conference as they make the final push towards the playoffs with nine games remaining. Head Coach Justus Scott spoke on his team's performance in the win over the Vikings.
"It's a win. We didn't play great baseball defensively and a little spotty on the mound," he said. "But we swung the bats and the guys coming out of the bullpen didn't let them score the last four or five innings. Any time you win it's a good day."
The Coyotes used six pitchers against the Vikings with Clayton Detherage starting on the mound and getting the win. He threw four innings and gave up four earned runs on five hits with a walk and four strikeouts. Jacob Ortiz came on for an inning giving up one earned run on two hits with two walks an d0 strikeouts. Jax Holzem pitched a scoreless inning with a walk and two strikeouts. Jake Ridding pitched a scoreless inning allowing a hit with two strikeouts and no walks. Yadiel Casul pitched a scoreless inning with no walks and a strikeout. Moises Soriano pitched the final inning allowing a hit but no runs and had a walk and a strikeout.
The Coyotes offense had 43 at bats with 19 hits for 20 runs and 19 RBIs including four walks and five strikeouts. They left only seven runners stranded on base and had three doubles and two home runs from Brentt Olmo and Jordan Massis. Scott spoke on his team's offense carrying them in the win and what they expect as they continue to fight for the postseason.
"That always helps if we can swing the bats early in the first three innings, it would have been close and when games are close your opposing team feels like they have a shot at it. And they can be close at the end but we have been playing good baseball at all facets for about the last week or week and a half. So today we had a little hiccup on the bases and defensively.
"Again, we lost some tough games, four games in conference by one run and a couple of extra inning games. We couldn't close it out so it put us behind a little bit. If we take care of business next week the last seven games are going to be a lot of fun."
Cerro Coso continue conference hosting Victor Valley on Thursday and then visit the Rams on Friday with both games beginning at 2:30 p.m. They then host Desert on Saturday at 1 p.m.
In the top of the first, Detherage started off the game hitting the leadoff batter and then gave up a double. He got the next batter to ground out to first but the Vikings scored. He struck out the next batter and then gave up a hit and seemed to get the out at home plate. The umpire then called obstruction on Coyotes catcher Jackson Alaniz and gave the run to the visitors. Detherage hit another batter and struck out the final batter he faced. The Coyotes offense began with Jonluke Hobdy getting a hit as the leadoff batter, Jordan Boman hitting a line drive to the Vikings center fielder, and Olmo getting a hit. Hunter Bagshaw struck out and with two outs, Massis hit a two-run single to tie the game at 2-2.
In the second, Detherage gave up a hit and a bunt, but the Coyotes defense was able to pickoff the runner trying to steal second. He got the ensuing batter to hit a sacrifice fly to Stephen Moraski at center field to score a run. Barstow followed with a double off Detherage with an error from the infield but the Coyotes pitcher got the next batter to ground out to first. The offense began with Alaniz walking to first, then Dominic Lope got a hit, and Blake Tablazon hit a line drive to right field. Hobdy was at bat and hit a sacrifice fly ball to tie the game at 3-3.
In the third, Detherage was able to retire the Barstow side by getting the first two batters to ground out and the last to strikeout. Boman was the leadoff batter for the Coyotes and he reached first after being hit by a pitch. Olmo hit an RBI triple to center field and Bagshaw followed with an RBI single to put Cerro Coso ahead 5-3. Massis and Luigi Reyes both got hits to load the bases with no outs, and Alaniz hit a popped ball to the Barstow shortstop. Lopez was walked to score a run, Blake Tablazon hit a two-run single, Hobdy hit an RBI, Boman hit a two-run double, and Olmo hit an RBI double for a 12-3 lead. Alaniz scored the final RBI of the inning to give the Coyotes a 13-3 lead going into the fourth.
On the mound, Detherage gave up a hit to the leadoff batter and then a triple that scored a run for the Vikings in the top of the fourth. He struck out the next batter he faced and gave up a hit but the Coyotes defense was able to get the runner out at home. He then got out of the inning on a ground ball to first. The Coyotes offense began with Tablazon grounding out, Hobdy getting a hit, and Boman getting a hit but Hobdy thrown out at second. Olmo then hit a two-run home run over the right field fence for a 15-4 lead.
In the fifth, Ortiz was on the mound and gave up a hit to the first batter he faced. He got the ensuing batter to pop out and walked the next batter. After giving up another hit to load the bases, he got the next batter to hit a line drive to Moraski in center field. He walked the next batter he faced to gift a run to Barstow and got the final out on a line drive to Moraski. Massis was the leadoff batter and hit a solo home run on the first pitch he saw for a 16-5 Coyote lead. Reyes got a hit, Alaniz hit a line drive to center field for the first out, and Lopez got a double. Reyes scored on a wild pitch and Tablazon brought home another on a ground ball for a 18-5 lead.
Holzem was on the mound for the sixth inning and he hit the first batter he faced. He followed that by getting the next batter to ground out, hit the ensuing batter, struck out the next, and gave up a hit to load the bases on an error. He got out of the jam by striking out the next Viking batter. Barstow was able to retire the Coyote side with Boman hitting a line drive, Olmo hitting a fly ball to center field, and Cameron Breeze grounding out at his first at bat.
The seventh saw Ridding face the Vikings and he struck out the first batter, gave up a hit to the next, and walked the third. He then gave up a hit to load the bases but got out of the jam by striking out the ensuing batter and getting the final out on a popped ball. The offense saw Massis, Reyes, and Alaniz load the bases. Gavin Fraser got a hit but the Viking defense was able to get Massis out at home. Tablazon was hit by a pitch to bring in a run, and Chatman hit an RBI single to score the final run for the Coyotes.
Leading 20-5 going into the eighth, the Coyotes had Casul on the mound and he retired the side with a line drive to Massis in right field, a strikeout, and a ground ball to first. The offense had Stephen Moraski walk to first in his first at bat, Breeze ground out, Massis struck out, and Reyes hit a line drive to center field.
In the top of the ninth, Soriano closed for the Coyotes and got the first batter he faced to pop out. He gave up a double, struck out the next batter, walked the ensuing batter, and ended the game on a ground ball to first.