Crawdads Erupt Late, Stompers Roll in Wednesday CCL Action
A busy Wednesday slate across the California Collegiate League featured big offensive performances, late rallies and several comeback wins.
Walnut Creek used an eight-run seventh inning to pull away from San Francisco, while Sonoma delivered the biggest offensive performance of the day in a 19-run win over Menlo Park. Elsewhere, Arroyo Seco erased a four-run deficit, San Luis Obispo battled past the Philippines Baseball Group and Conejo defeated Academy.
Walnut Creek Crawdads 14, San Francisco Seagulls 8
The Walnut Creek Crawdads used an eight-run seventh inning to rally past the San Francisco Seagulls, earning a 14-8 win.
San Francisco led early behind a solo home run from Christian LaMothe in the first inning and a three-run homer from Jacob Gilbreath in the fifth. George Schmitt added a two-run homer in the sixth, giving the Seagulls a 7-4 advantage.
Walnut Creek stayed within reach behind Joe Coupland, who drove in a run with a single in the third and added a two-run homer in the fifth. The Crawdads cut the deficit to one in the sixth before breaking the game open in the seventh. Brandon Clizbe delivered a go-ahead extra-base hit, Kam Taylor added a two-run single and Walnut Creek capitalized on multiple San Francisco errors to build a 14-7 lead.
The Crawdads finished with 14 runs on 10 hits, while the Seagulls totaled eight runs on 12 hits.
Sonoma Stompers 19, Menlo Park Legends 4
The Sonoma Stompers put together the day's biggest offensive showing, defeating the Menlo Park Legends 19-4.
Sonoma scored three runs in the first inning and never looked back. Tino Vasell opened the scoring with an RBI single before Michael Jones doubled in two more runs. The Stompers added three runs in the third and another in the fourth to build a 7-1 lead.
Jones continued his strong night with a three-run home run in the sixth, and Bryson Ayala added a solo homer in the seventh. Sonoma then broke the game open with six runs in the eighth, highlighted by Misael Uriepero's three-run double.
The Stompers finished with 19 runs on 15 hits, while Menlo Park was held to four runs on five hits.
Arroyo Seco Saints 6, Orange County Riptide 4
The Arroyo Seco Saints erased a four-run deficit with a six-run eighth inning to defeat the Orange County Riptide, 6-4.
Orange County built a 4-0 lead behind Dennis Fitzpatrick's two-run single in the first, Travis Curry's RBI single in the sixth and an unearned run in the seventh.
Arroyo Seco was held scoreless through seven innings before breaking through in the eighth. Nick Nashiwa drew a bases-loaded walk, Brody Chyr, Brayden Flores and Evan Reiter followed with RBI singles, and Sean Asperger added a sacrifice fly to put the Saints ahead. Brandon Nguyen capped the inning with another RBI single, giving Arroyo Seco a 6-4 lead.
The Saints held Orange County scoreless in the ninth to complete the comeback.
San Luis Obispo Blues 7, Philippines Baseball Group 4
The San Luis Obispo Blues came from behind to defeat the Philippines Baseball Group, 7-4.
San Luis Obispo took a 2-0 lead in the first inning on Diego Murillo's two-run double, but the Philippines Baseball Group answered with two runs in the second and another in the third to move ahead, 3-2.
The Blues responded in the fifth. Kosei Suzuki tied the game with a solo home run, Brady Alves later scored on a passed ball and Brendan Comerford added an RBI single to give San Luis Obispo a 5-3 lead.
After the Philippines Baseball Group cut the deficit to one in the seventh, San Luis Obispo added two insurance runs in the bottom half on a Dominick Najar RBI single and a Comerford sacrifice fly.
Conejo Oaks 7, Academy Barons 2
The Conejo Oaks used an early lead and a four-run seventh inning to defeat the Academy Barons, 7-2.
Conejo opened the scoring in the first inning when Owen Meli tripled to bring home Brandon Contreras before scoring on Tyson Reis' sacrifice fly. Academy got one run back in the second, but the Oaks added another in the third on Danny Aguilera's RBI single.
Conejo broke the game open in the seventh. Matthew Witkow singled in a run, Reis added an RBI double, Caden Stillwell followed with an RBI single and Tyler Antwine reached on an error that brought home another run.
The Oaks finished with seven runs on 11 hits, while Academy scored two runs on seven hits.
Players of the Night
Michael Jones, Sonoma Stompers
Jones helped lead Sonoma's 19-run performance with a two-run double in the first inning and a three-run home run in the sixth.
Joe Coupland, Walnut Creek Crawdads
Coupland drove in runs with both an RBI single and a two-run home run, helping Walnut Creek rally past San Francisco.
Brandon Clizbe, Walnut Creek Crawdads
Clizbe delivered the go-ahead hit during Walnut Creek's eight-run seventh inning.
Brayden Flores, Arroyo Seco Saints
Flores delivered a key RBI single during Arroyo Seco's six-run eighth inning and later scored the go-ahead run.
Diego Murillo, San Luis Obispo Blues
Murillo opened the scoring for San Luis Obispo with a two-run double in the first inning.
Owen Meli, Conejo Oaks
Meli tripled, scored twice and helped set the tone in Conejo's win over Academy.
Around the League
• Walnut Creek Crawdads 14, San Francisco Seagulls 8
• Sonoma Stompers 19, Menlo Park Legends 4
• Arroyo Seco Saints 6, Orange County Riptide 4
• San Luis Obispo Blues 7, Philippines Baseball Group 4
• Conejo Oaks 7, Academy Barons 2
