West Maintains Balance While on Tightrope : College baseball: Aided by three double plays, left-hander goes the distance to give Pierce a one-game divisional lead over losing Bakersfield.

Score one for perseverance and timely defense.

Pierce College got a gutsy performance from left-hander Adam West and brilliant work with the glove to defeat Bakersfield, 6-3, in a crucial Western State Conference South Division game Thursday at Pierce.

The victory gave the Brahmas (22-14, 14-7 in conference play) a one-game lead over Bakersfield (21-16, 13-8) in the divisional race with four games remaining. But West (9-4) and the Brahmas had to work out of several jams in the early and middle innings.

West, who went the distance, yielded 10 hits and seven walks, striking out six. He struggled from the second through the sixth, but was bailed out by three double plays.

“He did the tightrope act,” Pierce Coach Bob Lofrano said. “But that’s how Adam is sometimes. If you don’t get him early, he’s tough to get.”

Two of the rally-killing double plays were started by slick-fielding second baseman Cesar Martinez, the first with one out and the bases loaded in the third inning and the last with one out and a runner at first in the sixth.

“Cesar was marvelous, just awesome at second base,” Pierce Coach Bob Lofrano said.

The Pierce infield also pulled off a difficult double play in the fifth.

After West walked the first two batters, George Vargas tried to advance them with a bunt but first baseman Kevin Milligan jumped on the ball and threw to Lou Tapia for the force at third. Tapia fired back to Martinez at first to complete the play.

Center fielder Brian Basowski followed with a great diving catch of Todd Josue’s liner to end the inning.

The Brahmas, however, could not help West escape the second inning unscathed. Bakersfield batted around and used four hits--including an RBI double by Josue--and two walks to take a 3-0 lead.

The Brahmas answered with two runs in their half of the inning against right-hander Andy Bernard (9-2) on a two-base error by third baseman Jacob Freeman that allowed Brian Sturges to score from second and Basowski to score from first.

Pierece tied it in the third on an infield hit by Basowski and went up, 5-3, on a two-run home run by Sturges in the fifth. Shortstop Edgar Maldonado walked to lead off the sixth for Pierce, advanced to third on a hit-and-run single by Martinez and scored on a fielder’s choice by Heath McElwee.