Saddleback gets walk-off run to down Sierra, 10-9, in first game of 3C2A Baseball Championship
| Final (10) | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Sierra
|
3 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 15 | 4 |
|
Saddleback
|
3 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 12 | 0 |
CCCAA State Championship
Bracket l Tickets l Tournament Central
FOLSOM - Zach Schwartzberg's sun-aided single down the right-field line scored Isaiah Morales with the winning run in the bottom of the 10th inning to lift Saddleback College to a 10-9, 10-inning win over Sierra College in the opening game of the 2023 California Community College Athletic Association Baseball State Championships on Saturday afternoon at Folsom Lake College.
Morales led off the bottom of the 10th with a single up the middle and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt by Jason Hefft. J.C. Allen was intentionally walked and after a fly out by Cole Koniarsky, Schwartzberg lofted a fly ball towards the right-field corner, but the ball was lost in the sun by Sierra rightfielder Andre Chacon, allowing Morales to score from second with the game-winning run.
With the win, the Bobcats (37-11) advance to the winner's bracket where they will play the winner of the Folsom Lake/Santa Ana game on Sunday at 2 p.m. The loss drops the Wolverines (34-14) to a 10 a.m. elimination game between the loser of tonight's Falcons/Dons matchup.
Sierra led 7-3 in the early innings before the Bobcats tied things up with a run in the third and three more in the fourth to even the score at 7.
Dillon Wells came through for the Wolverines in the top of the seventh with a two-out, two-run single through the right side, putting Sierra up, 9-7.
But a sacrifice fly off the bat of Allen and an RBI-single by Koniarsky in the bottom of the eighth pushed the Bobcats back even with the Wolverines, setting up the 10th-inning dramatics.
Saddleback closer Blake Butcher (5-2) picked up the win in relief, while Sierra's Matthew Sigafoos (3-2) took the loss.
Morales was the spark near the top of the Saddleback batting order, going 3-for-6 with four runs scored, while Koniarsky added three hits, including a solo home run, two runs and three RBI.
For the Wolverines, every batter in the lineup had at least one hit, with Jack Weise leading the way with a 3-for-5 performance with two runs and one RBI.
(Tony Altobelli, CCCSIA)
