El Camino pushes OCC to deciding third game Sunday in SoCal Sectional

After a 10-8 loss to El Camino College on Saturday in a game that was anything but true to form, the Orange Coast baseball team hopes form holds on Sunday.

The top-seeded Pirates (36-11) will meet the No. 5-seeded Warriors (38-9) in a deciding game of the best-of-three Southern California Sectional series on Sunday at noon, with a trip to the four-team state tournament on the line.

OCC has not lost a Game 3 in the playoffs in at least 12 seasons, but bucking the odds was common place for El Camino on Saturday.

The Warriors became the first team to hit two home runs off OCC pitchers this season, as the Pirates’ staff had allowed just five dingers before Saturday.

OCC, which posted a 16-14 advantage in hits on Saturday, lost for only the second time in 27 games in which it collected at least 10 hits.

OCC lost for the first time this season with at least five extra-base hits and the Warriors’ 14 hits were the second-most this season against the Pirates.

El Camino needed every one of those hits to hold off the designated visitors, who allowed five hits in a three-run first, surrendered a three-run homer in the fourth and gave up three runs on three hits, including a solo home run in the sixth.

Still, down 9-3 heading into the seventh inning, OCC coach John Altobelli gathered his players in front of the dugout to try to provide a little inspiration.

“I told them, ‘We have this,’” Altobelli said. “We had one-third of the game left and I wanted them to just take it pitch-by-pitch, inning-by-inning. It was good to see them put come back and put that three-spot up [in the seventh] and we had the right guys up [in the sixth, seventh and eighth] we just couldn’t get it done.”

OCC left 13 runners on base, including the bases loaded in the third inning against Warriors starter Cassius Hamm, who improved to 12-3.

Hamm induced a groundout from John Balliet to end the third inning. He struck out Balliet with two on to end the fifth and prompted slugging first baseman Eric Wagaman to hit into an inning-ending double play with men on first and third in the sixth.

After Nolan Powers, Jacob White and J.T. Navarro had consecutive RBI singles with two outs in the seventh, reliever Trevor Tapas struck out Orange Empire Conference Co-MVP Travis Moniot looking to end the threat.

After Navarro singled in two runs with one out in the ninth against closer Jake Carr, Moniot struck out, and Wagaman just missed an inside fastball that died in left field for the final out.

Moniot was hitless in five at-bats and fanned three times. It is only the second time he has gone zero for five this season and the first time he has whiffed three times in a game.

Navarro finished three for six with three RBIs and one of five OCC doubles, while Powers and White were both three for five with a double, and combined to score four runs.

Wagaman, now 10 for 22 in his last five games, was two for six, while Robert Teel and Ramiro Velasco were both two for four for the Pirates.

Teel is now hitting .384, tops among all OEC players.

“We had more hits, but they had a few more big hits than we did,” Altobelli said. “But we’ve seen all their good arms [starters Taylor Rashi and Hamm, who are a combined 23-7, and Carr, who has seven saves]. Their third guy [projected starter Ricky Ramos, who is 6-1 with a 3.66 ERA] isn’t anything close to the first two guys who started.

“I like the fight in us and I like [OCC starter McKinley LeFore, an Oregon bounce-back who is 8-1 with a 3.50 ERA] on Sunday. I’m feeling confident,” Altobelli said.

Freshman left fielder Ty Conrad, who had one homer all season coming in, was three for five with the aforementioned three-run bomb and also reached base all five plate appearances to lead the Warriors.

OCC starter Ryan Randel, who threw a complete game in his previous start to beat Santa Ana, was knocked out in the first inning Saturday.

OCC has 27 hits and 13 runs in the series, while El Camino has 22 hits and 14 runs.

Southern California Sectional

Game 2

El Camino 10, Orange Coast 8

SCORE BY INNINGS

OCC 011 001 302 – 8 16 0

EC 300 303 01x – 10 14 1

Randel, Jabara (1), Magee (6), Moore (7) and Teel; Hamm, Talpas (7), Carr (9) and T. Casanova. W – Hamm, 12-3. L – Randel, 7-4. Sv – Carr (7). 2B – Dorn (EC), Wagaman (OCC), Navarro (OCC), Powers (OCC), Eastburn (EC), Teel (OCC), White (OCC). HR – Conrad (EC), Sylvester (EC).

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Twitter: @BarryFaulkner5