San Diego Mesa baseball controlled from beginning to end in an 11-2 rout of Southwestern College on March 12.
The stage was pretty much set for a long day at the ballpark for the Jaguars with a 5-run first, inning solid defense and seven dominant innings from starting pitcher Abraham Sanchez.
“The game plan was to apply pressure offensively and defensively,” according to Mesa right fielder Sean Alvarez.
Southwestern pitching woes proved to be the Achilles heel for the Jaguars when by the bottom of the fifth inning the Jaguars were on their third pitcher giving up 4 runs and a home run to right-center by Isaiah Gomez, who went 2-4 on the afternoon with 2 RBIs.
Mesa put together a complete game executing in all three phases, with aggressive base path running turning into seven stolen bases and tight defense leading to an inning-ending double play in the top of the sixth. It marked the first time that the Olympians have scored 10 or more runs this season.
Starting pitcher Sanchez stretched out 8 hits over the course of seven innings and and had four strikeouts for his first win of the season. Reliever Clay Fordham took over in the eighth inning to record the final six outs and only gave up 2 hits and no runs, capping off an efficient day for the pitching staff.
With a 2-16 record with 21 games remaining on the schedule, the Olympians have a tough road ahead and could have easily given up on their season already.
Head coach Jake Portugal said the Olympians showed determination and heart in earning just their second win of the season.
“If we can capitalize off this dominant victory, there’s no telling what could happen the remainder of this season,” Portugal said.
The first and fifth innings were where the Olympians did the most damage. Outfielder Andrew Gauna led off the bottom of the first with a leadoff double and was able to score off a single from Isaiah Gomez being aggressive on the base paths. Gomez then stole second, which was the second stolen base of the inning, and Jake Klimkiewi immediately followed that up with an RBI double after Sanchez was hit by a pitch. Trey Concepcio batted in another two runs capping off a five-run, four-hit first inning for the dominant Olympians.
Leading off the bottom of the fifth, Gomez continued his hot offensive play with a 2-run home run, sparking another rally for the home team. After being walked, Klimkiewi stole second and Sanchez followed that up with a single and a stolen base to cap things off. Concepcio batted in another 2 runs which pretty much put the game out of reach for the visiting Jaguars.
Mesa’s next home game is against Imperial Valley College on March 19.
