Ventura Beats Pierce, 7-6, Despite Familiar Lapse

If only it were as easy as one-two-three for the Ventura College baseball team.

The youthful squad has developed a tendency to jump out of the gate then lapse into nap time in the later innings. Saturday against Pierce, Ventura led by five runs after two innings then barely held on for a 7-6 Western State Conference victory at Pierce that left Coach Gary Anglin relieved but frustrated.

“We’re brutal,” Anglin said. “That’s our pattern. One, two, three we play well. Four we do fine. Five and six they start to catch us. Seven, eight and nine they start to take over.”

Ventura (17-7, 4-5 in conference play) appeared to have the game in hand after scoring six runs in the second inning. Ventura sent 10 batters to the plate in the second, and Darrell McMillin struck the key blow, a grand slam.

“I was thinking sacrifice fly,” said McMillin, who hit a low Travis Arsenault fastball over the fence in dead center.

Anthony Romero and Steve Philbrook also had run-scoring singles in the second, but Arsenault steadied thereafter. He allowed only one more run in his seven-inning stint, but it was the game-winner.

Philbrook led off the fifth with a walk, advanced to second on a wild pitch and scored on Damon Hicks’ single to left field. That made the score 7-2.

Pierce (11-11, 4-5) closed the gap but failed to come up with key hits. All 13 Pierce hits were singles, and not one of them scored more than one run.

In the fourth, Pierce loaded the bases on consecutive singles but came up with one run. The Brahmas hit into inning-ending double plays in the fifth and eighth, left the bases loaded in the sixth and ended the game on a baserunning gaffe in the ninth.

With two out and the bases loaded, Juan Soriano hit a slow chopper and beat the ball to first, but Ventura first baseman Carlos Rios wheeled and picked a leaning Mike Vanacore off second for the third out. Joe Cascione had scored on the play, and Vanacore represented the potential winning run.

“Man, did we have baserunners all over the place,” said Pierce Coach Bob Lofrano, whose team stranded 12. “That’s kind of like our season goes. We’re in every game, and somebody has to step forward and do the job.”

Jason Kernan (4-1), the second of five Ventura pitchers, picked up the victory and helped Ventura break a three-game conference losing streak.