Warriors Outslug Pirates to Force Decisive Game Three in Sectionals

COSTA MESA, Calif. – Ty Conrad and Brady Dorn each tallied three hits on the day as El Camino College forced a winner-take-all game three with a 10-8 victory over Orange Coast College in game two of the California Community College Baseball Southern California Sectionals on Saturday afternoon at Wendell Pickens Field.

The Warriors (38-9) scored double digit runs for the 16th time this season and they needed every one as the teams combined for 18 runs on 30 hits on Saturday afternoon with nine hits going for extra bases. Conrad was perfect at the dish for the Warriors, going 3-for-3 with a home run, three RBIs and four runs scored on the day. Dorn went 3-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored.

Cassius Hamm picked up the victory on the mound against the Pirates (36-11) after allowing five runs, four earned on nine hits. He walked two and struck out four en route to his 12th victory on the mound this season.

Trevor Talpas tossed two innings in relief and Jake Carr picked up his seventh save of the season, striking out one and got first baseman Eric Wagaman to fly out to end the game.

The Warriors never trailed in the game after jumping out to a 3-0 lead after one inning. Trevor Casanova led off the frame with a single to right and then Conrad followed suit with a single to center. Dorn then opened the scoring with a double to right field, scoring Casanova and putting runners on second and third with no outs.

Ryan Eastburn flied out to left, bringing in Conrad and then Connor Underwood singled to left to plate Dorn to put ECC up by three. After a fly out, Cody Wissler singled to right center to put runners on the corners and put an end to pitcher Ryan Randel's day for the Pirates. He tossed just 2/3 of an inning, allowing three runs on five hits and was tagged with his fourth loss of the year.

The Pirates scored a run in the second and third to trim the deficit to one but the Warriors responded in the fourth on one swing of the bat.

Darian Sylvester led off the frame by getting hit by a pitch and then Casanova followed with a single to put the first two runners on. Conrad then stepped up and with the Pirates expecting a bunt, the Warriors outfielder swung at the first pitch he saw and deposited it over the left field wall, just right of the fair pole for a three-run shot to put the Warriors up 6-2.

The Warriors eventually took a 9-3 lead but the Pirates kept clawing back, scoring three times in the seventh inning to trim the ECC lead back to three at 9-6.

Underwood hit an RBI single in the eighth to make it 10-6 and the Warriors needed the cushion as the Pirates rallied for two runs in the ninth on a two-run single by second baseman J.T. Navarro, his third hit of the day.

But Carr settled in and struck out Travis Moniot for the second out and then got Wagaman for the last out to send the series to a decisive third game on Sunday at noon.