IRVINE, Calif.– In their Opening Day duel with the Conejo Oaks, it was the Riptide pitching staff that shined, lifting OC to a 3-1 victory.
Right-hander Andrew Parker (Cal State Northridge) got the start for the Riptide on the bump and gave the team a solid pitching performance, only allowing one run through four innings.
The Oaks grabbed their lone run of the night in the top of the third with a Will Joseph RBI double to jump out to a 1-0 lead but found little more success against Parker.
On the other hand, the Riptide offense was also slow to get out of the gates with OC being no-hit through the first six innings.
However, in the bottom of the sixth, Rocco Gump (Northwestern State University) got the Riptide on the board and ended the no-hitter with an RBI single to bring in Nathan Cadena.
This sparked the Riptide lineup as the squad was able to manufacture two more runs in the bottom of the seventh by way of a Bren Wilkinson (Cal State Northridge) solo home run and Nathan Cadena RBI single.
“I’m proud of the way that they adjusted,” manager Connor Spencer said. “I brought up the guys and told them you need to simplify, stay quiet, if you have to change bats then change bats go to a lighter bat, but we need to go up there, we need to stay simple and we need to make contact.”
With a two-run lead, right-hander Tommy McGuire (Cypress College) followed reliever Coleton Dahl (Santa Barbara City College) out of the bullpen and shut the door on the Oaks. Even when Conejo threatened in the top of the seventh with the bases loaded, McGuire escaped the jam unscathed, holding off an Oaks comeback.
He closed the last four innings for the Riptide without giving up a single run and striking out four in the process. Mcguire explained how he kept his process simple in the win over the Oaks.
“I just wanted to throw the ball as hard as I could and be there for the boys,” McGuire said.
After this dominant display on the mound, Coach Spencer gave credit to his pitching staff for helping carry the load in the Riptide’s first win of the season.
“All three guys tonight Parker, Dahl, and McGuire were all really good,” Spencer said. “Really impressed with a lot of swing-and-miss stuff. [They] filled up the zone, it’s exactly what you need to do coming into summer ball.”
The Riptide will look to build on their opening night win and get to 2-0 when they take on the Arroyo Seco Saints on Friday at 7 p.m.
