Santa Barbara, Calif. – Dominating from the first pitch to the final out, the OC Riptide maintained a strong lead for nine innings against the Santa Barbara Foresters, securing a decisive 8-4 victory on Saturday.
Going into this matchup, the Foresters had every weapon to beat the OC Riptide.
They lead the California Collegiate League with a 7-3 record and a .700 win percentage. The Foresters are managed by Bill Pintard who is a scout for the Yankees and in his 27th season with Santa Barbara.
But, the Riptide entered the game on a three-win hot streak and have consistently cruised upward from a 3-5 start to the summer. The Foresters wouldn’t stop the Tide’s roll. OC extended its win streak to four.
“This is obviously one of the better teams in the league and are consistently at the top in this league,” head coach Connor Spencer said. “We are going to put our best foot forward at the time we play them … On both sides we are really putting together our best lineups to face them.”
To open the game, right fielder Jake Brown (California Baptist University) hit an RBI single to shallow right field and drove in center fielder Michael Diaz (Grand Canyon University). To continue the scoring, shortstop Patrick Hackworth (University of California, San Diego) came home on a bases-loaded walk, and third baseman Rocco Gump (Northwestern State) hit an RBI Single.
The Riptide scored five runs in the first inning, and to complement the offense, pitcher Seth Spencer delivered five strikeouts in three innings while only giving up one run. Spencer threw three strikeouts in the bottom of the first to retire the side, and then the Foresters went three up, three down in the bottom of the second.
Coach Spencer said he’s seen the team improve in all three areas of the game: pitching, hitting and fielding.
“We’re starting to play clean baseball, and that’s all we’ve really been aiming for,” Coach Spencer said. “Every game we’re just trying to get a little bit better, and I think progressively after our start, I’m pleased with the way the guys responded.”
The Riptide’s recent streak is also credited to the new hitters added into the lineup, Coach Spencer said. Hackworth, who joined the team in mid-June, recorded three hits and a walk. Diaz also recently joined the Riptide. He knocked a double into center field in the fourth and created two RBIs.
To cap off the scoring, left fielder Ace Reese (University of Houston) hit an RBI single in the fourth to bring home Hackworth.
Closing out the game, reliever Tommy McGuire found himself in a bases-loaded jam with the tying run at the plate in the bottom of the ninth. With two outs, McGuire fanned the batter to end the game.
“The pitching got the outs when they needed to,” Spencer said. “I think today we did an excellent job of damage control … guys beared down and made big pitches at some point in this ball game.”
OC will face Santa Barbara again on Sunday. With this win, the Riptide sits at third in the CCL South Division and can jump ahead of the Foresters with another victory on Sunday.
