No. 18 Baseball Takes Game Two against Fullerton, 8-4

The No. 18 Riverside City College baseball team hit the road on Thursday afternoon for game two of a three-game series against the Fullerton College Hornets. The Tigers relied on a big third inning that put them in a good position throughout the entire contest. In addition, the pitching performances were on point leading to an 8-4 victory.

Riverside put a dent in the scoreboard early in the top of the third inning . Sophomore third baseman Jacob Barham kicked off the scoring frenzy by lofting a sacrifice fly to center field, plating sophomore center fielder Erick Rayford for the game's first run. Freshman first baseman Dylan Kanoho continued to cart a hot stick by notching the game's first RBI base hit, scoring freshman right fielder Junior Coleman. Freshman left fielder Joseph Hodapp followed with a dagger to cap the inning with a three-RBI double to grab a 5-0 lead.

Freshman starting pitcher Alexander Salazar harnessed the offense provided for him and strung together a solid outing. Despite allowing a pair of two spots, he settled in nicely during the meat of his start. In the fourth through sixth innings, he allowed just a pair of base runners. One of the base runners was thrown out by sophomore catcher Andrew Jurado on an attempted steal. Furthermore, he forced a pair of double play balls.  

Freshman closer Graham Kuck handled the bottom of the ninth inning with ease by striking out the side and earning his sixth save of the season en route to the victory.

Kanoho finished the day going 2-for-3 with two RBI and three runs scored. In the past three games, he has gone 7-for-13 with six RBI and five runs scored.

Hodapp went 3-for-5 with three RBI, while Coleman walked twice and scored twice.

The Tigers (23-13, 9-8 OEC) will look to take out the brooms in the final game of a three game series against the Hornets (16-19, 8-9 OEC) at home on Saturday, April 21^st at 12 noon at Evans Sports Complex.