Pirates trounce Cypress
COSTA MESA — In addition to an overflowing supply of pitching, hitting and athleticism, the Orange Coast College baseball team proved Thursday it also has the kind of maturity of which potential championship teams are made.
The Pirates, on the heels of their only loss of the season, in which they produced just two infield hits in a 4-1 home setback against College of the Canyons on Saturday, bounced back in commanding fashion in the Orange Empire Conference opener against Cypress.
The host Pirates (14-1-1), ranked No. 2 in Southern California, trounced the No. 5-ranked Chargers, 12-4, bettering the visitors (10-3) in every facet.
“It was a great start and it was, all-around, just a great victory,” said OCC Coach John Altobelli, whose team scored four runs in three innings to halt any thought of a slide.
“Coming into conference, it’s not good to lose, bit it didn’t look like we were too nervous about it,” said sophomore shortstop Joel Licon, who stood out among a handful of Pirates who had strong performances.
Licon, who has been heating up at the plate after sitting out last season due to academics, was two for four with a pair of runs batted in. He also handled six defensive chances flawlessly.
“[Licon, who began his collegiate career at Loyola Marymount] is starting to swing the bat, which is nice,” Altobelli said. “His defense has been phenomenal all year and I thought he made some really, really nice plays [Thursday].”
Ground balls were a common occurrence against OCC starting pitcher Brandon Brennan, who allowed four hits and two runs in seven innings to improve to 5-0. Brennan, who struck out four and walked two, recorded 14 outs on ground balls and two more on infield pops. All four of the balls Cypress hit out of the infield against Brennan, including a sinking liner caught by charging right fielder Bijan Rademacher, came in the fourth inning.
By that time, OCC had already put up the first of its three four-spots, turning two hits, two walks and a hit batter into all the lead it would need in the second against Cypress starter Carl Robinson.
Sophomore third baseman Ben Agredano and freshman center fielder Boog Powell each had two-run singles to become the first two of seven Pirates to drive in runs.
Powell, who entered the week with a state-leading .542 batting average, went three for five to up his eye-popping mark to .547. He has at least two hits in 14 games this season.
Freshman second baseman Justin Broussard went two for three with one RBI and sophomore catcher Blake Hugaert was two for four with an RBI.
Sophomore first baseman Eilert Meyers drove in two runs on a sacrifice fly to the warning track in center field to cap a four-run fifth inning for the Pirates.
Rademacher, who went one for two and stole two bases, forced in a run with a bases-loaded walk in the fifth. He also joined Powell, Hugaert and Stefan Sabol as Pirates who scored twice.
Agredano and Broussard both contributed stolen bases for OCC, which has bested its opposition in that category, 33-9, thus far.
The only two Pirates who did not drive in runs were sophomore left fielder Chris Carlson, who entered the week leading the state with 19 RBIs, and Sabol, a sophomore designated hitter and University of Oregon bounce-back who walked twice in his first game coming back from a broken bone in his wrist.
“It’s nice having Sabol back in the lineup,” Altobelli said of the 6-foot-2, 220-pound right-handed hitter. “He just brings a little aura around him, because he’s just such a good hitter and a clutch hitter who is known throughout the state.”
Eric Salcido, the last of three OCC relievers, worked a scoreless ninth inning.
OCC visits Saddleback on Saturday at noon, then ventures to Santa Ana, ranked No. 1 in SoCal, on Tuesday at 2 p.m.
Twitter: @BarryFaulkner5
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Orange Empire Conference
Orange Coast 12, Cypress 4
SCORE BY INNINGS
CC 000 100 120 – 4 9 0
OCC 040 040 04x – 12 12 0
Robinson, Anderson (5), Schafer (5), Tillinghast (8), Deer (8) and Hartong, Wick (7); Brennan, Vandernaald (8), J. Evans (8), Salcido (9) and Hugaert. W – Brennan, 5-0. L – Robinson, 2-1. 2B – Moore (C), Fitzgerald (C), Licon (OCC), Hugaert (OCC).