Thousand Oaks, Calif. — In a game that featured four lead changes and multiple late-inning rallies, the OC Riptide came up just short in an 11-inning heartbreaker, falling 7-6 to the Conejo Oaks Saturday night.
Starting pitcher Trey Seely (Hope International University) threw four perfect innings to retiring all twelve batters he faced. Highlighted with five strikeouts and keeping the Oaks guessing with a variety of pitches.
The Riptide offense broke the 0-0 tie in the top of the 5th. Luke Johnson (Cornell University) started the inning off hot with a single to left, Jack Salmon (UNLV) drove him in after a line drive single to take the lead 1-0.
In the top of the sixth, Bradley Navarro (University of Utah) reached on a hit to right-center and promptly stole second and third. Tyler Holland (University of Arkansas) walked, and both runners advanced on a wild pitch. Navarro then swiped home on a passed ball to extend the lead to 2–0.
The Oaks responded in the fifth and sixth innings with a sac-fly and a two-run home run to take the lead 3-2.
OC quickly responded in the top of the eighth thanks to a successful two-out rally consisting of a couple of hits from Holland and Zach Crandall (UCI) putting runners in scoring position. An error from the shortstop allowed Holland to score, along with an infield single courtesy of Johnson, which helped the ‘Tide take the lead 4-3.
Conejo tied it up in the bottom of the eighth, and after both teams scored in the tenth inning, Camden Sos (TCU) scored on a Navarro groundout in the eleventh to briefly make it 6-5. A single and passed ball in the bottom half led the Oaks to a walk-off victory.
“We’ve got to fight from pitch one to the last,” said Head Coach Evans. “These guys are grinders, and as long as we keep that mindset, we’ll be in position to win ball games.”
The Riptide have a rematch with the Conejo Oaks Sunday at 5:30 at the Great Park.
