IRVINE, Calif – A thrilling matchup between the OC Riptide and the Walnut Creek Crawdads took place Wednesday night as the Riptide sought a win to break their three-game losing streak.
After the Crawdads struck first by scoring a run in the top of the fifth from an RBI single, the Riptide found themselves in yet another game chasing the lead. After walking in a run in the seventh and falling behind by a sum of two runs, the Riptide could either choose to hang their cleats for the night or use the deficit as motivation.
For Riptide fans, the latter of the two options made this match-up one to remember.
In the eighth, a leadoff double from Luke Johnson (Cornell Baseball) made some noise in the Great Park as this was the first time during the entire game that the Riptide threatened the Crawdads on the base path. Jake Brown (Cal Baptist University) scored Johnson with an RBI single to cut the Crawdad lead to 2-1 going into the ninth.
The Crawdads went down 1-2-3 in the ninth as the Riptide looked to start a rally to take the lead and the win.
After the first two Riptide batters were retired, Brenden Wilkinson (California State University Northridge) kept the Riptide engaged and alive as he hit a two-out double. Following his hit, Matt Flaharty (University of Utah) came in to pinch-hit for Nate Stiveson (Stanford University). With two outs in the bottom of the ninth, Flaharty delivered in movie-style fashion by knocking in Wilkinson with an RBI double and tying the game.
“I was just excited to get an opportunity,” said Flaharty. “The boys kept us in the game and I just wanted to come through and give us a chance to win.”
The Riptide looked to finish the game in the ninth with Johnson up to bat but came up short after a groundout sent the game into extras.
In tie-breaker fashion, the 10th inning began with a runner on second with no outs. The Crawdads leadoff batter singled to bring in the runner on second, followed by another single to give the Crawdads another two-run lead as the game headed into the bottom of the 10th.
With some help from pressure and adrenaline, the Riptide capitalized on some pitching errors and loaded the bases on three walks. Rocco Gump (Northwestern State University) came to the plate with bases loaded and two outs looking to make some magic.
The crack of the bat illuminated the Great Park as he crushed a ground ball between the defense to bring home the winning run as the Riptide walked it off with a final score of 5-4.
“I just wanted to get a good swing on a good pitch over the plate,” said Gump when asked what his mindset was up at the plate. “I didn’t want to try to do too much, just tried to hit it where it’s pitched and let everything else take care of itself.”
A standout pitching performance from the Riptide’s Andrew Parker kept the Crawdads at bay through six full innings, allowing only two hits while striking out eight.
The Riptide squad looks to continue the magic again tonight at the Great Park against the Ventura County Pirates.
