Hitters Thrive on Heat as Toros Split 2 With Pomona

On a day when the temperature hit 98 degrees, the batters were equally hot as the Cal State Dominguez Hills baseball team split its first double-header of the year Saturday at Cal Poly Pomona. The Toros lost the first game, 20-9, and won the second, 14-3.

On Friday in Carson, Dominguez Hills opened the three-game series by defeating the Broncos, 6-1.

The Toros are now 18-22 overall and 8-16 in the California Collegiate Athletic Assn. Pomona is 14-24 and 8-17.

The Broncos broke open the first game Saturday with 11 runs in the bottom of the fourth, the most runs ever allowed by Dominguez Hills in one inning.

The Pomona explosion, which began with the score tied, 7-7, included a three-run homer by designated hitter Yanni Aghili.

The winning pitcher for the Broncos was right-hander Brett Lachemann (4-8). John Gutierrez (0-2) took the loss for Dominguez Hills.

In the second game of the double-header, Dominguez Hills opened the scoring in the first inning when center fielder Robert Campbell scored on a single by first baseman Darrell Conner.

In the bottom of the first, the Broncos evened the score, but the Toros then put the game out of reach by scoring five runs in the second inning and six in the third.

Conner’s three-run homer keyed the second-inning outburst, and catcher Mike Gabbani’s grand slam was the big blow in the third.

Senior right-handed pitcher Jamy Villa (4-4 with a 3.77 ERA) got the win for the Toros. Scott Bush (1-2) was the loser for the Broncos.

The Toros ended the scoring with four runs in the seventh inning.

In Friday’s game, Dominguez Hills fell behind, 1-0, in the second inning but erupted for five runs in the bottom of the third. The Toros added a run in the eighth to seal the victory for pitcher Armando Gomez (6-5, 3.28 ERA). Bob Bishop (0-2) took the loss for Pomona.

Toro third baseman Fred Camarena’s 11-game hitting streak ended in Friday’s series opener. During the streak, Camarena batted .500 (19 for 38). He leads the team with a .404 average.