Gauchos go the distance against Irvine Valley

The Saddleback baseball team fall short against Irvine Valley College 4-3 in an extra inning showdown on Saturday at Doug Fritz Field. The Gauchos couldn’t mount a comeback and regain the lead after going strong for twelve total innings.
The Irvine Valley Lasers caught the Gauchos off guard in the top of the first inning. Short stop for the Lasers, Tyler Odekirk singled to start off the game. Third baseman, Ryan Rafferty advanced Odekirk to second base after being hit by a pitch during his plate appearance. Up next was the Lasers designated hitter, Cole Joy, who reached on a fielder’s choice, loading the bases.

The next batter struck out looking giving the Gauchos their first out of the game. The Lasers next batter was first baseman Tyler Wagner. He popped up to the outfield scoring Odekirk from third baseman, giving the Lasers an early 1-0 lead. The Gauchos lucked out on the next better who fouled out.

Saddleback College’s Erik Voller hits a homerun to give the Gauchos a 3-1 lead against the Irvine Valley Lasers

The Guachos showed some finesse at the plate in the bottom of the second inning. First baseman for the Gauchos, Zack Bowman, tripled to right field scoring Jerry Carillo knotting the game at 1-1. Spencer Heinsius was up next for the Gauchos. In an attempt to score the runner on third, Heinsius bunted showing his base running skills beating the throw to first while also scoring the runner on third. His poise and quickness gave them the lead 2-1.
The Gauchos would add to their lead in their next appearance at the plate. Catcher Erik Voller went yard hitting a bomb to left field giving the Gauchos a seemingly commanding lead 3-1.

The lead would quickly disappear in the top of the fourth inning. After a walk and a double the Lasers second baseman Colin Conroy hit a line driving to right center field scoring both runners tying the game at 3-3.

The Gauchos and Lasers showed some consistent batting but what followed were eight scoreless innings. The game remained tied up until the top of the twelfth inning. After Ryan Rafferty doubled to right center field, Zack stack singled up the middle giving the Lasers a 4-3 lead going into the final half inning for the Gauchos.
The Lasers shut down the Gauchos in their final at-bats getting three straight outs to end the game 4-3. The Gauchos are now tied with the Lasers in the OEC conference with a win-loss of 5-7.

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