Walnut, Calif. – After dropping game two to Long Beach City College, preventing the Mounties from four series sweeps in a row, the Mt. SAC Baseball Team still took the series with an emphatic 20-9 victory over the Vikings at home on Saturday, April 18.
With the victory, Mt. SAC improves to 22-16 overall and holds firm in second place in the South Coast Conference at 19-5. Long Beach falls to 16-20, 11-10.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
This high scoring game brought the drama. And while the final score suggests a blowout, it didn't feel that way early on.
Long Beach struck first in the opening inning, as Garrett Rodriguez hit a two-run double to give the Vikings an early edge. But the Mounties wasted no time punching back—and then some.
An offensive surge in the bottom half flipped the game instantly. Singles from Andrew Alva and Brock Foulds, a bases-loaded walk by Jackson Giacone, and a sacrifice fly from Isaac Fanoga powered Mt. SAC to a 5-2 lead after just one inning.
The Mounties added runs in both the second and third innings behind RBI singles from Nick Mejia and Tyler Primanto to stretch the lead to 7-2.
Then came the chaos.
In the fourth inning, the Vikings stormed back with six runs, capitalizing on control issues from Mt. SAC starter Menchaca. A string of clutch hits—including singles from Cross Stephens, Rodriguez, and Carson Slager, plus doubles by Aaron Mingo and Myles Fendrick—pushed Long Beach back in front, 8-7.
Seth Sumner came out of the bullpen to stop the bleeding, and the Mounties immediately answered yet again. Ryan Castro delivered a clutch two-RBI single in the bottom half to reclaim the lead at 9-8.
Long Beach tied it one last time in the fifth on an RBI single from Fendrick, making it 9-9—but that's where their momentum ended.
From that point forward, it was all Mounties.
Mt. SAC broke the game open in the sixth with back-to-back two-RBI singles from Primanto and Chip Mertz, jumping ahead 13-9. They added more in the seventh thanks to a Giacone RBI double and a bases-loaded walk drawn by Primanto.
By the eighth inning, the Mounties were in full control. Taking advantage of Viking miscues, they piled on five more runs—highlighted by a Foulds RBI double—to put the finishing touches on a 20-run outburst.
On the mound, Sumner earned the win in relief after stabilizing things in the middle innings. He was backed by Jack Rudometkin and Juan Verduzco, who each tossed a scoreless inning to close it out.
Long Beach, meanwhile, cycled through eight pitchers in a tough day on the mound, combining to allow 20 runs on 14 hits while issuing 17 walks.
NEXT UP:
The Mounties close out the regular season with a two-game set against Mt. San Jacinto College Eagles beginning Tuesday at Mazmanian Field. First pitch is scheduled for 12:00 p.m.
STAY CONNECTED:
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For additional information, please contact the Mt. SAC Sports Information Office at 909.274.4630.
