PC Gets Chance To Even Series On Thursday
TOP PHOTO: Palomar second baseman Gabe Willes turns to throw to first after forcing Grossmont's sliding Reece Hernandez in the third inning on Tuesday. IMMEDIATELY ABOVE: the Comets' Jordan Gardner slides into second with a double. -- Photso by Hugh Cox
EL CAJON (4-18-2017) -- The bad news is that Grossmont picked Tuesday to play one of its best baseball games of the season, while Palomar played one of its worst, resulting in an unceremonious end to the Comets' 14-game win streak and an 11-3 victory for the Griffins.
The good news is that the Comets must wait only until Thursday for a chance at revenge and an opportunity to even the teams' first-place Pacific Coast Athletic Conference first-place series at a game apiece. That's when the two rivals will meet again, this time at Palomar College Ballpark.
The G-House will take records of 25-6-1 on the season and 18-1 to lead the PCAC by itself into the game, which is scheduled for 2 p.m. Palomar will enter the game with records of 27-7 and 17-2. A revenge victory by the Comets would send the teams into Saturday's final game of the series at Grossmont's Noel Mickelsen Field back in a tie for first place. Saturday's game will be played at noon.
Grossmont, getting early home runs from Robert Bostedt and Jale Sim, took a 6-1 lead after 3 innings on Tuesday. Palomar ralled to close the gap to 6-3, scoring twice in the top of the seventh on a single by Tristan King, Marco Young's sacrifice bunt and back-to-back singles by Joey Cooper and Jordan Gardner, the latter to drive in both runs.
But the Comets' come-from-behind hopes unraveled in the bottom of the inning. That's when the Griffins scored 4 times on an 2 errors on a play when their second of 5 pitchers on the day made a bad throw to second instead of going to first on Reece Hernandez's sacrifrice bunt -- coupled with 4 walks in the inning.
For Palomar, Davin Castro pitched 2 2/3 hitless, scoreless relief innings going into the fatal bottom of the seventh, and Steve Rausa came on with a run across and the bases loaded in the bottom of the eighth to get an inning-ending double play.
At the plate, Gardner went 2-for-5 with a double and an RBI single and Conor McKenna was 2-for-4. Grant Buck contributed an RBI single. Young delivered a single after fouling off pitch after pitch on what was a 15-pitch at-bat in the top of the fifth inning. Jared Montoya singled and got a sacrifice bunt down. Gabe Willes drew 2 walks.
State No. 6-ranked Palomar's 14-game win streak that ended was the second-longest in California. The state's longest streak of 25 games also ended Tuesday when No. 1-ranked El Camino lost 3-2 to Rio Hondo.