De Anza Dons routed by College of San Mateo

The Dons are trying their hardest to win ball games, but their effort is not showing up on the field just yet.

The Dons committed seven errors in Tuesdays’ 14-1 loss against the College of San Mateo Bulldogs, three of them fueling a Bulldogs’ nine-run sixth inning.

Manager Scott Hertler assures fans that although the Dons appeared sloppy on the field, they are doing all they can to tighten their game up.

“We just had trouble catching the ball, but as long as we work hard, that’s all that matters,” Hertler said. “It [the defense] has been addressed.”

Second baseman Martin Taylor had a rough time at second base, accounting for four of the seven errors, and going 0 for three at the dish. However, the loss was by no means his fault.

All 14 Bulldog runs were charged to starting pitcher Vidanage Shian. In five and two-thirds innings of work, he surrendered nine earned runs, but gave up just two walks and struck out five.

Although Shian yielded five runs before the excruciating sixth-inning, Hertler left him in because he was confident that his righty was still pitching well.

“I thought he wasn’t getting hit hard, and he was throwing strikes,” Hertler said. “The bullpen did an outstanding job, but we don’t have the luxury of having a lot [in the bullpen].”

One bright spot in the game was the Dons’ bullpen, pitching three and one-third scoreless innings of perfect baseball.

Thing looked promising for the Dons in the bottom of the second inning. With the bases loaded and two outs, Bulldogs’ pitcher Daniel Chavez balked in a run, but the Dons squandered the scoring opportunity when shortstop Dalton Lopes struck out to end the inning.

That was the last big mistake Chavez made. In five and two-thirds strong innings of work, Chavez gave up just one run on three hits, while striking out seven and walking only two.

The Bulldogs made things happen with the bat and on the basepaths. College of San Mateo’s second baseman Michael Kathan stole three bases in the game and went three for five with two RBIs.

Bulldogs third baseman Cody Zimmeran also had a great day in the plate, going two for three with two RBIs. In the bottom of the sixth inning, Zimmeran put the exclamation point on the nine-run sixth inning rally with a towering home run that cleared the left-field wall.

The two Bulldog runs in the third inning were all they needed. Speedster Kathan brought in a run on an infield single, and catcher Shawn Walters laced an RBI single to left field, making the score 2-1.

For De Anza, Kevin Roeder was one of the few Dons that excelled at the plate, going two for three. His first hit was a laser beam that bounced off the pitcher Chavez’s legs, but the Bulldogs’ righty was able to continue.

The Dons are not catching many breaks on the diamond – or much of anything -- but Hertler knows that it is no excuse and not for a lack of effort. If the Dons are to succeed, they need to minimize both mental and physical errors.

“We haven’t been lucky, but you make your own luck,” Hertler said.

Hopefully, that luck will shine soon.

                      Video courtesy of Nick Utley/Cupertino Sports Online

Monterey Peninsula capitalizes on De Anza’s mistakes, edges Dons 7-6

I know this is a bit different from what I usually write about, but I'm going to post it here anyway. Here is my game story from today's junior college baseball game between the De Anza Dons and the Monterey Peninsula Lobos.              
               
CUPERTINO -- The Monterey Peninsula Lobos did not beat the De Anza Dons – the Dons beat themselves.

               
The Dons led 5-1 after the fourth inning, and then 6-3 after six innings, but the Lobo hits kept on coming in the later innings. The Dons’ brain lapses and missed opportunities throughout the game complicated matters further.

               
The Dons’ home opener started shaky for De Anza in the top of the first inning. The starting pitcher, Mason Sperakos, balked twice in the inning, once with a runner at first (who reached on an error by third baseman Kevin Roeder) and then again with runners on first and second.

               
With runners at second and third with one out after the balk, the Lobos capitalized on Roeder’s mistake. Chris Untereiner hit a sacrifice fly to left field, scoring Caio Errico and giving the Lobos an early 1-0 edge.

              
Despite the Dons giving up four walks as they approached the bottom of the fourth inning, they still held the Lobos hitless and only trailed 1-0. Then, De Anza erupted.

               
The Dons scored five times in the bottom of the fourth inning to take a 5-1 lead. RBI singles by right fielder Victor Barron, catcher Gary Foster, and a bases-loaded walk by first baseman Rob Garrison fueled the rally. The scoring capped off with a bases-loaded two-run double by center fielder Will Gibson.

               
The Lobos trimmed De Anza’s lead to 5-3, after first baseman Rob Garrison’s throwing error sparked a two-run sixth-inning rally. Had Garrison not committed the defensive miscue, pitcher Brian Fischer’s double-play ball two batters later would have ended the inning with no runs scored.

               
The Dons tacked on another run in the bottom of the sixth inning. Monterey Peninsula pitcher Corbin O’Reilly hit Taylor Martin with the bases loaded, forcing in a run and widening the Don lead to 6-3.

               
Then, in the top of the seventh, it was the Lobos’ turn to erupt

               
Another fielding error by Roeder loaded the bases with one out. After a run came in on an RBI single by the Lobos’ first baseman Jeremy Green, center-fielder Matt Rosa (who went two for five) delivered a clutch two-run game-tying single, knotting the game up at 6. With two outs and runners on second and third, right-handed pitcher Lorenzo Ojeda threw a wild pitch that brought in the Lobos’ tie-breaking run.

               
The Dons blew scoring chances in the late innings. With the Lobos leading 7-6 in the bottom of the seventh inning, Kai Washington led off with a single but was picked off trying to steal second base.

               
The Dons tried to rally once more in the bottom of the ninth inning. After left fielder Nathan Kadlecek walked to lead off the frame, a wild pitch advanced him to second.

               
The next batter, pinch hitter Mike Oram, attempted to bunt Kadlecek over to third. Although he had three decent pitches to bunt at, Oram took strike three on the outside corner at the belt.

               
The rest of the inning was not much better for the Dons. Right-handed hurler Caio Errico, who moved over from shortstop, ended the game and earned the save by striking out the side looking.

               
The Dons had plenty of chances to score but could not come through in the late innings. They left 10 men on base in the game.

               
The Lobos’ Corbin O’Reilly earned the win, pitching two and one-third plus innings while giving up one run on four hits.

              
 The Dons’ Lorenzo Ojeda was tagged with the loss, lasting one inning and surrendering four runs on four hits. De Anza used nine pitchers in the game and walked a combined eight batters.

               
On Thursday, the Dons head to Monterey to take on these same Lobos. If they want to see a better result, they must clean up their game and do the little things right.



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