The Oregon State commit has had his ups and downs during the season. Shortstop Diego Vasquez got off to a blistering start to begin the season. Then, in April, he went into a thirteen-game mini-slump heading into the playoffs. When the lights were bright, Vazquez came through in the biggest moment with a four RBI performance in a 7-3 victory over L.A. Pierce.
In a 3-3 game, Vazquez had the bases loaded with two outs in the eighth inning after a single and back-to-back walks. The Hornets’ claps in the dugout were getting louder before each pitch was delivered. On the other side, L.A. Pierce fans raised the decibel level every time the umpire called a strike. On a 2-2 count, Vazquez smoked a fastball into the left-center field gap, clearing the bases for a three-run go-ahead triple.
Fullerton dugout was up and about, as they howled while pointing at Vazquez. The shortstop put his hands together while yelling in celebration at third base. The Fullerton fans were jubilant after Vazquez came through with the go-ahead hit.
“I knew from the at-bat he had against Vinny that he was going heaters for the most part. I didn’t know if he didn’t trust his offspeed. I mean, if you’re seeing heaters that much, I was gonna try to get my foot down on time, get the run in,” said Vazquez.
Third baseman Luke Viola drove in Vazquez with an RBI single to left field, making it 7-3. When Vazquez headed toward the dugout, his teammates swarmed and patted him on the back. Head Coach Chad Baum knew how clutch Vazquez’s hit was in that situation.
“It was a very proud moment for them to come through in the clutch, especially Diego, who’s a little banged up; he’s played every game at shortstop. So it’s a long year and came through with a big hit,” said Baum.
Vazquez gave Fullerton their first lead of the game back in the fourth inning. Trailing 2-0, the Hornets scored their first run of the game on a safety squeeze from Catcher Kai Hopfel. Right Fielder Jake Starr tied the game with an RBI single to left field. Starr stole second and third base during Vinny Hudson’s at-bat. Baum approached Vazquez in the on-deck circle before heading to the plate, giving him instructions. He had runners on the corners with two outs after a Hudson walk.
The Brahmas went to the bullpen and brought in Allen Olmos to face Vazquez. On a 1-1 pitch, Vazquez ripped an RBI single into right field, making it 3-2. As the dugout pounded on the padding, Vazquez looked over at his teammates in celebration. Vazquez’s two hits advanced the Hornets into the 3C2A SoCal Regional Final, where they will face Santa Ana for a spot in the State Championships next week.
“We’re gonna sleep and get healthy. We got a bunch of guys, been in the hospital and flu bug, going around,” said Baum.
The game stayed tight throughout. Fullerton found themselves playing from behind for the second time in this series. They came back and won, despite closer Murdoch Taylor giving up the tying run in the eighth after leading 3-2. Taylor wound up with the win, thanks to Vazquez’s clutch hit.
“We’re never out for the most part, till that last out, our team’s super gritty. We give it our all to the last pitch,” said Vazquez.
Taylor closed the door down in the ninth, retiring the side in order on a flyout, groundout, and strikeout.
The Hornets used five relievers in the win. Baughman went one inning and gave up two runs. Landen Pulsifer and Matthew McCliman combined to throw five scoreless innings. Hunter Billingsley went 1 ⅓ innings of one-run ball before Taylor recorded the last five outs.
“[Bullpen] was outstanding. That’s where we draw it up. No one wants to give up runs. We can give up hits. They did their job of not giving up runs, and we bent, but we didn’t break,” said Baum.
