Santa Rosa Junior College escaped with a win on Tuesday after fending off five unanswered runs by College of Marin at Cook Sypher field.
The Bear Cubs dominated the first five frames, taking a 7-0 lead into the sixth. However, College of Marin did not lie down so quietly. Marin capitalized on erratic pithing by SRJC’s Shamus Lyons, who loaded the bases in the sixth inning, eventually hitting a batter and forcing in a run.
Lyons allowed the next batter to reach with a single to deep left bringing two more runners home. Marin scored a single run in consecutive innings to bring the game 7-5. SRJC pitcher Trenton Darley walked two batters early in the eighth inning as the Mariners’ comeback continued to gain momentum.
SRJC head coach Damon Neidlinger brought in the Bear Cubs closer Patrick Keamoai for a two out save. He struck out two consecutive batters to end the rally. Keamoai personally squashed the Mariners comeback efforts in the ninth inning and the Bear Cubs escaped with a win. “Patrick came in and shut the door down. That’s what we needed,” Francois said.
SRJC’s offense was as consistent as it has been all season. Second baseman Hance Smith connected on a homerun in the bottom of the second inning, bringing the lead 2-0. Smith’s homer brings his total to a team-leading four homeruns on the season. Smith is also tied with left fielder Ben Sanderson for stolen bases with six.
Catcher Cole Brodnansky had four RBIs on the day. Three of them came from a deep shot to center field in the fourth inning, the drive caused the Marin center fielder to violently collide into the wall, unable to secure the catch. Both of his hits in the game went for doubles.
The pitching was inconsistent. Five pitchers combined for 15 strikeouts. Devin Kirby and Shamus Lyons had four each. The pitching staff also allowed 9 walks and hit three Marin players.
“We gave up 12 free passes. That’s not good baseball,” said assistant coach Tom Francois. Luckily, Marin was only able to score one run from the 12 free passes handed out.
Starting SRJC pitcher Parker Rouff flashed his skill set early on with three strikeouts. He struck two batters and tossed three walks.
Kirby came into the game in the third inning in relief of starter Rouff and struck out the first two batters he faced to end the inning. He went on to strike out another two batters the following inning before his day was over.
“I felt confident going into the game throwing strikes and pounding the zone,” Kirby said.
Up Next:
The Bear Cubs (9-3) play at Solano Community College at 2 p.m., March 1 in Vallejo.
