The Road to Fresno Begins for the Warriors at Home vs Pasadena

The El Camino College baseball team begins its quest back to Fresno for the CCCAA State Championship when it hosts No. 15 Pasadena City College in the opening round of the California Community College Baseball State Championships Regionals on Friday afternoon at 2 p.m. at Warrior Field

THE DETAILS

No. 2 El Camino College (32-6, 17-5) vs. No. 15 Pasadena City (25-13, 14-8)

The Game Schedule

Game 1-Friday May 3rd (2:00 PM) at Warrior Field

Game 2-Saturday May 4th (11:00 AM) at Warrior Field

Game 3 (if necessary)-Saturday May 4th (3:00 PM or 30 minutes after Game 2) at Warrior Field

Venue: Warrior Field.  The venue is located on the Manhattan Beach Blvd. side of the El Camino College campus. Visitors may park in Parking Lot F adjacent to the field and in Lot C. Permits can be purchased for $3 at parking permit machines located throughout the campus parking lots. The machines accept CASH ONLY.

PAYMENT UP FRONT

Tickets for this weekend's series at Warrior Field can be purchased in person and the prices are as follows: CASH ONLY

General Admission: $12
Seniors (Age 60 & Up), Children 12 and Under and Students w/ ID: $8

FOLLOW THE ACTION

Live stats and live video will be available for all the games against the Lancers. The video is $7.95 or free to those fans who bought the season pass. Links can be found below and on the ECCWarriors.com schedule page.

Live Stats: https://bit.ly/2vDF9IV (Game 1) https://bit.ly/2Lgn5iT (Game 2) https://bit.ly/2PJdkIz (Game 3)

Live Video: http://bit.ly/2r8U1ee

Getting to know the opponents

HOW THEY GOT HERE

The Pasadena City College baseball team finished the regular season as Co-South Coast Conference North Division champions with Mt. Sac and earned the #15 seed in the Southern California Regional Playoffs.  They hosted a SoCal Regional Play-In Round game against Citrus College on Tuesday, April 30th and won the game 3-1.

Series History vs Pasadena City

The Warriors squared off against Pasadena in a home and away game in March.  The Warriors beat them in both games 4-2 on the road and 17-4 at home. Recaps for both game here: https://bit.ly/2VFOOgQ and https://bit.ly/2GXFIE4

Watch Out For Those Lancers

The Lancers have a collective .309 batting average with 313 runs scored and 12 home runs. They are 12th in the state in runs scored and 11th in the state with a team batting average. The pitching staff  is 9th in the state with a 3.20 Team ERA in 334.1 innings pitched.

Gabriel Arellano was the Co-MVP of the South Coast Conference North Division.  The freshman outfielder slashed .401/.450/.467 for the season with 45 runs scored and 31 RBIs.  He led the team with 73 hits and led the team in stolen bases with 10.

Gordon Ingebritson was named the SCC North Division Pitcher of the Year.  The sophomore righthander went 6-3 for the year with a 3.05 ERA in 85.2 inning pitched.  He fanned 69 batters and allowed 16 walks. Opponents hit .230 off him.

Catcher Cole Pilar was named to the SCC North First Team.  The sophomore slashed .326/.449/.393 for the year. He had 44 hits with 33 runs scored and 31 RBIs.  

Infielder Marco Martinez was their last selection the SCC North Division first team.  The freshman slashed .341/.497/.536 for the season. Martinez led the team with 5 home runs and scored 40 runs and had 37 RBIs.

Patrick Pena was named to the SCC North Division second team.  The sophomore righthander was 9-3 for the season with a 2.55 ERA in 74 innings pitched.  He allowed 27 walks and struck out 55 batters. He also pitched seven innings on Tuesday against Citrus College.

Relief pitcher Lorenzo Llorens was named to the SCC North Division second team.  The sophomore went 3-1 for the season with a 2.88 ERA in 40.2 innings pitched. He walked 12 batters and struck out 39 hitters.

The shortstop Ryan Lewis was named to the SCC North Division second team.  The infielder slashed .298/.403/.347 for the season. Lewis had 37 hits, 24 runs scored, and 27 RBIs.

Outfielder Edward Manzo was named to the SCC North Division second team.  The sophomore outfielder slashed .287/.421/.426 for the season. He had 31 hits, 22 runs scored, and 19 RBIs.

For El Camino College

The Warriors were given the No.2 seed in Southern California.  They have consistently ranked within the Top 7 teams in the state throughout the season and hovered around the No.3 team in Southern California behind Orange Coast College and Riverside.  The final CCCSIA Poll (April 30th) ranked the Warriors as the No. 4 team in the State and No. 2 team in Southern California.

How They Got Here

The Warriors finished the season with a 32-6 overall record.  They went 17-5 in conference play. The Warriors posted a 15-2 record at home.  The Warriors won a share of the South Coast Conference-South Division title, splitting the division title with Long Beach City College. On a wild Friday afternoon to wrap up the regular season where the Warriors needed a few results to fall their way, almost everything went perfect for El Camino.  The Warriors could only control their own destiny and took care of business with a 4-2 win over LA Harbor. Long Beach only needed to win to secure the conference title outright and a higher seed but they couldn't hold a 4-3 lead over Compton and were upset at home for a 7-5 loss.

The Warriors offense had a team batting average of .270.  They scored 232 runs and hit 16 home runs. The pitching staff has definitely been the story for the Warriors.  El Camino leads the state with a team ERA of 2.11. The next closest team is Fresno with a 2.51 ERA. The Warriors have allowed the third most hits with 265 and an opposing team batting average of .217.  The pitching staff is no.1 in the state in runs/earned allows (96 runs/79 earned runs). They have allowed the fewest walks in the state with 91.

Postseason Accolades

Eight Warriors were given all-conference honors.  Three players were named to the first team and five players were named to the second team.  

Aaron Orozco went 10-1 for the season in 13 starts.  He has tossed 2 complete games and one shutout in 83.1 innings pitched.  He is second in the state with 10 wins and eleventh in the state with 88 strikeouts.

Jimmy Galicia went 9-2 for the season in 12 starts.  He tossed two complete games and earned one save for the season in 89 innings pitched.  He is eleventh in the state with a 1.82 era and tied for 6th in the state with 9 wins.

Joseph Borges earned his second straight all-conference honors after being named to the All-SCC first team.  He was named to the second team last year. Borges had a line of .316/.340/.426 for the season along with 30 runs scored and 30 RBIs along with 3 home runs.

Max Pappas went 7-1 for the season in 11 starts.  Pappas had a 2.39 ERA in 75.1 innings pitched.

Spencer Long was one of the best relievers in the state and was tied for third with 8 saves.  Long had a miniscule 0.43 ERA in 21 innings pitched and 11 appearances. Long allowed just one run in all his outings and struckout 23 batters and allowed two walks.

Spencer Palmer earned his second straight All-SCC honors after being named to the All-SCC Second team.  Palmer was named to the first team last season. Palmer had a line of .346/.500/.549 for the season. He led the team with 46 hits and three home runs.  Palmer scored 34 runs and had 30 RBIs despite hitting in the second spot in the lineup. He led the tem with 14 doubles, 30 walks, and 15 HBPs.

Taishi Nakawake was named to the All-SCC second team.  The sophomore shortstop had a line of .275/.345/.366 with 23 runs scored and 16 RBIs.  Batting in the 9th spot, Nakawake had 36 hits, 7 doubles, one triple, and one home run.  

Ty Conrad earned his second all-conference honors after being named to the All-SCC second team.  Conrad was given All-SCC first team honors in 2017 and sat out the 2018 season with an injury. The sophomore outfielder had a line of .240/.347./.336 and scored 19 runs and had 22 RBIs.  Conrad had 35 hits, 6 doubles, 1 triple, and 2 home runs.

The Pitching Staff/Probable Starters

Game 1-Aaron Orozco.  10-1, 2.27 ERA.

Game 2-Jimmy Galicia. 9-2, 1.82 ERA.

Game 3-Max Pappas.  7-1, 2.39 ERA.

Once a Warrior, Always a Warrior

The Warriors had to deal with more adversity then most teams had to deal with this season.  They lost starting outfielder Brett Gieseke after the 14th game of the season right before conference play started on a non-contact injury at practice.

On April 18th, the Warriors lost a teammate in Sladen Mohl to a tragic car accident.  Mohl was the starting catcher to one of the best pitching staffs in the state. Sladen is survived by his parents and four siblings.

"We are all deeply saddened by this tragedy. Sladen was an excellent baseball player but an even better teammate and individual. He was kind, positive and brought smiles to everyone he came in contact with. Our hearts are with his family at this moment. Sladen will be missed but never forgotten. Once a Warrior, always a Warrior," said Nate Fernley, ECC Baseball Head Coach.

The rest of the season has been dedicated to Sladen. A fallen teammate, brother, and friend.  

SLADEN MOHL MEMORIAL FUND

El Camino College baseball head coach Nate Fernley has started the "Sladen Mohl Memorial Fund" to aid Sladen's family in covering upcoming costs and arrangements.

"Sladen Mohl was a beloved friend, son, family member and teammate to many people across the country. Sladen left us far too early, but has left a life-long impact on every individual that he has come in contact with. We are raising funds to help support his loving family with the upcoming costs and arrangements. Sladen was from Alaska so we would like to bring him home. All donations will be going directly to Sladen's mother for the expenses."

Donations can be made by following this link: https://www.gofundme.com/sladen-mohl-memorial-fund