The Orange County Riptide utilized an explosive third inning to capture their fourth consecutive win Saturday night, defeating the MLB Academy Barons 12-5 at Great Park.
Down 2-1, the Riptide bats erupted and scored seven runs in the inning, riding the momentum at a cruising altitude for the remainder of the game.
Infielder Conner Barth, whose sacrifice fly put the Riptide on the board in the first, would continue to do damage, hammering a ball off the left field wall to drive in a pair of runs and put the Riptide back in front.
“Hitting is contagious,” Barth said of the team’s offensive performance. “One guy puts a ball in play and gets a hit and the next guy steps up and wants to do the same.”
Designated hitter Tatum Marsh promptly traded places with Barth, singling down the right field line and giving the Riptide an insurance run before stealing second base.
Two batters later, Left fielder Hunter Harrington took his turn in mashing Baron pitching, doubling off the right field wall, driving in Marsh and making it a 5-2 game.
The wheels kept rolling when Pone singled to right and Bradley Boudreau scored the Riptide’s sixth run.
CCL All-Star Game MVP Jarett Sabol then drove in two more on a single to right, giving Orange County an 8-2 lead before the end of the third.
On the defensive side, Riptide catcher Nate Pone made his presence felt early, nabbing two would-be base stealers in the inning.
After a scoreless second, with two runners on, Barons center fielder Eiji Sawamura roped a game-tying double, moving a runner to third base in the process who would later score on an infield single and give the Barons a 2-1 lead.
The lead wouldn’t last, however, as the Riptide offense came alive the next half inning and began to pull away, despite three more Baron runs scoring before the night was over.
Orange County tacked on four more runs in the eighth before right-hander Sean York closed out the ninth and sealed the 12-5 victory.
The Riptide travel to Santa Barbara to take on the Foresters Sunday, July 12.
First pitch is set for 2:00 p.m.
