Giants Drop Game Despite Late Surge
VISALIA, Calif. – College of the Sequoias showed resilience late, but a slow start proved too much to overcome in an 11-6 loss to Coalinga College on Thursday afternoon.
The Giants found themselves in an early hole as Coalinga built an 11-0 lead heading into the bottom of the eighth. Despite the deficit, COS continued to fight and put together back-to-back scoring innings to finish the game.
In the eighth, the Giants struck for four runs behind a string of productive at-bats. Kannon Silva (Mission Oak HS) scored on a passed ball to break up the shutout, and Easton King (Tulare Western HS) followed with an RBI single. Moments later, Noah Gonzales (Hanford HS) lined a base hit into right field to bring home two more runs, trimming the lead to 11-4.
The Giants tacked on two more in the ninth as Carson Hindmarsh (Saskatchewan) delivered a two-run single, scoring Silva and Evan Gonzalez (Redwood HS).
Hudson Groh (Liberty HS) got the start for COS and struck out five in 4.1 innings, while Aaron Prieto (Fowler HS) and A.J. Bekedam (Sierra Pacific HS) held Coalinga scoreless over the final 1.2 innings. Offensively, Gonzales finished with two RBIs, while King and Hindmarsh also drove in runs.
COS matched Coalinga with 11 hits and drew six walks. The late-inning surge showed their ability to stay poised and put pressure on opponents until the final out.
On Deck
College of the Sequoias will look to bounce back on the road as they wrap up the three-game set with Coalinga College on Saturday, April 5 at 1:00 p.m.
The Giants will then turn their attention to a pivotal three-game series against Fresno City College next week. Game one will be played at home on Tuesday, April 8 at 2:00 p.m., followed by games two and three in Fresno on Thursday, April 10 at 3:00 p.m. and Saturday, April 12 at 1:00 p.m.