Towers Stays Hot, Throws Fifth Complete Game, 2-0

The kid is in a zone.

In baseball, that means someone is on a tear, performing at a high level, much like what Josh Towers is doing.

The freshman right-hander came up with another gem Thursday, pitching a one-hitter to defeat Bakersfield, 2-0, in a Western State Conference baseball game.

Towers (8-1) struck out nine, walked one and had a no-hitter through six innings before Brandon Ritchey singled past a diving Art Bolen at first base to open the seventh.

No other Bakersfield batter came close to getting a hit.

“He comes at you with good stuff,” said Tim Painton, Bakersfield coach.

The victory was Towers’ fifth complete game and lowered his earned-run average to 2.03.

It kept Oxnard (23-6, 14-2 in conference play) in a tie with Cuesta for first place in the North Division.

“We believe in ourselves,” said Pat Woods, Oxnard coach. “We are having fun. These guys want to get it done.”

Towers and right-hander Jeremy Wedel (4-3) battled in a scoreless tie through 5 1/2 innings but the Condors pushed across their runs with two out in the sixth.

Wedel kept Oxnard in check with a sharp-biting slider, yielding only two singles through five innings, but Eric Farias singled to right with one out in the sixth and Jake Spahr also singled to right one out later.

Scott Foli followed with a triple to the right-center-field fence that scored Farias from second and Spahr from first.

“He had a wicked slider,” Foli said. “He threw it to me all day and I just kept popping up. He finally threw me a fastball and I just went with it.”

Towers baffled Bakersfield (20-14, 10-6) with a good fastball. His curveball, although not nearly as sharp as before, still helped him set up batters.

“I was just leaving [his curveball] high a lot,” Towers said. “I don’t know what I was doing wrong with it.”

The Renegades had only four baserunners, two on a pair of errors by second baseman Farias, usually a sure-handed infielder.

Wedel worked eight innings, giving up six hits, two walks and striking out four.

“We’ve struggled the last couple of weeks,” Painton said. “Something seems to break down every game. Today it was our hitting.”