Kenny Cress / Sports Writer | Posted: Friday, April 30, 2004 12:00 am
Hancock College/s baseball team finds itself in the position no squad wants to be in.
If the Bulldogs are to have a post-season, they must get lots of help.
Cuesta/s 8-4 victory at Hancock Thursday left the Cougars at 13-8 in Western State Conference North Division games. Hancock is 10-11, 15-16, and both teams have four games left.
Moorpark was 12-8 in conference games before action Thursday. Only the top two WSC North teams have earned playoff spots the last several years, and that will likely be the case again.
Hancock has lost three straight and four of its last five. "Lately we/ve been giving up the big inning, and we haven/t had the offense to respond to that," Hancock coach Chris Stevens said.
It had just happened to his team again. Cuesta roughed up Hancock starting pitcher Adam Campbell for five runs in the third inning, and that was enough to carry the Cougars to victory.
Wes Pereira was the Cougar who hurt the Bulldogs most. He hit a three-run home run in the third. He also held the Bulldogs to two runs before pinch hitter Eric Domingues hit a two-run home run off him in the seventh to pull Hancock within 8-4.
"I thought Pereira did a nice job of pitching," Stevens said. "We haven/t been doing enough offensively to help ourselves."
Pereira exited after Domingues/ homer with one out in the seventh. Cuesta relief pitcher Kenny Evoniuk extinguished the spark of hope the Bulldogs had after Domingues/ home run by pitching a perfect final 2 2/3 innings.
The Bulldogs did not have a hit until Eric Bowman doubled off the fence in left centerfield to lead off the bottom of the fifth. None of the Bulldogs had more than one hit.
Cuesta outhit Hancock 15-5, but Bulldogs relievers Jacob Kougl, Matt Walsh and Todd Nelson kept their team in the game by taming the Cougars.
Campbell lasted just three innings. St. Joseph graduate Dustin Kelly doubled home a run off Kougl in the fourth, but Hancock/s relief pitchers shut out Cuesta the rest of the way.
Kelly and fellow St. Joseph grad Tim Regnier had three hits each for Cuesta. Kelly drove in two runs and Regnier drove in one. Andreas Madsen hit a solo home run for Cuesta in the fourth.
The Bulldogs host Ventura at 1 p.m. Saturday. After that, Hancock has road games at Moorpark and Oxnard and a home game at 1 p.m. May 8 against Santa Barbara.
"If you want to play out the rest of the season," Stevens told his players testily afterward, "make the …commitment now."
Softball
All-WSC Honors annoucned
Shortstop Stephanie Silva of Hancock College landed a spot on the All-Western State Conference First Team.
Hancock coach Eddie Grose said Silva narrowly missed MVP honors. The MVP was freshman shortstop Tisha Duran of Ventura. Allison Merzon of Cuesta was the Coach of the Year.
Ventura won the conference championship. Cuesta finished second. Both teams qualified for the Southern California Regional.
Ginger Ayala of Ventura was the Most Valuable Pitcher of the conference. The First Team catcher was Heather Sanders of Cuesta. The First Team first baseman was Erica Avila of Cuesta.
The rest of the First Team infield included Alacia Kendall of Santa Barbara and Catie Goldblatt of Moorpark.
Hancock/s Nika Miller was the All-WSC Second Team/s first baseman. The rest of the infield included Erica Campbell of Cuesta, Lindsay Goldblatt of Moorpark and Rachel Rivas of Ventura.
Crystal Garcia of Hancock landed a spot in the Second Team outfield. The other Second Team outfielders were Jimie Palacios and Jennifer Kasmer of Moorpark.
Whitney Jenks of Cuesta was the Second Team pitcher. Nicole Williamson of Moorpark was the Second Team catcher. Hancock/s Lena Felix and Natalie Ballasteros earned honorable mention.
April 30, 2004