Fullerton College baseball (17-9, 5-2 in the OEC) dominated in a home game Tuesday shutting out the defending OEC champions Orange Coast College (13-10, 3-4) with a final score of 11-0 Fullerton.
Fullerton started the scoring in the bottom of the third inning with an RBI double by freshman catcher Jacob Sharp.
This brought freshman outfielder Isaiah Marquez in from second and in from third was freshman infielder Jared Benash who made it home for the 2-0 lead.
Freshman catcher Bryce Gamble homered to left field for an RBI to increase the Hornets lead to 5-0 in the bottom of the fourth inning.
“This team has worked hard from day one and they are on a mission. Their goal is to start a legacy for themselves. They are doing it by hard work every day and they show up every day. Which is a big staple in our program,” said Hornets’ coach Baum after winning the game on Tuesday.
Orange Coast College did have some notable moments scattered throughout the game including a total of seven hits. Fullerton had a total of 11 hits and nine RBIs.
A fielding error by the Pirates allowed Hornets freshman first baseman Marco Malerba and Sharp to score unearned runs. This took the lead 4-0 by the end of the third inning.
“It’s no surprise we’re doing good things. We took advantage of some situations and some plus counts. The Pirates are a really good team with a really good legacy,” said Baum about Orange Coast College’s baseball team.
Freshman third baseman Kaipo Haole had a monster fifth inning, hitting a three-run home run to left field, to make the lead 8-0 Hornets.
The Hornets continued the game with no issues fielding balls or creating double plays. In the top of the seventh inning, the Pirates grounded into some double play action for the Hornets.
Hornet shortstop Benash fielded the ball and passed to freshman second baseman Dominic Martinez, who threw to Malerba on first to secure the two outs.
Hornets starting pitcher No. 34 Joel Martinez (5-2) pitched a total of six shutout-innings only giving up six hits.
Hornets closer No. 46 Michael Curatolo pitched three innings and had one hit. Curatolo closed out the game with an easy one-two-three inning.
“We’ve got to be ready. They’re the reigning OEC Champs. Either way, we look at it. They have all the flags. They have all the banners. Our goal is to get to the level that they are at. Do the things that they’ve done and just play baseball,” said Baum.
Fullerton College ended a three-game winning streak in a 9-6 loss to Orange Coast College during the second of the three-game OEC series played Thursday.
Fullerton College (17-10, 5-3 in the OEC) plays the final game of the week-long series at home Friday against Orange Coast College (14-10, 4-4) at 2 p.m.
