Hernandez Was Near-Perfect, Has to Settle for a No-Hitter

About the fifth inning, Coach Chris Cota of College of the Canyons started thinking no-hitter.

By the eighth, when right-hander Ivan Hernandez set down Moorpark on strikeouts, Cota was really feeling it.

“He just went out focused in the ninth,” Cota said of Hernandez. “He really went after it.”

Hernandez, a sophomore right-hander from Sylmar High and transfer from Cal State Northridge, secured a no-hitter by retiring the side in the ninth to defeat Moorpark, 5-0, in a Western State Conference interdivisional game on Tuesday.

Cota, a first-year coach, said it is believed to be the first no-hitter in school history.

Hernandez (2-4) missed a perfect game by walking a batter in the second inning. He struck out 11 and lowered his earned-run average to 3.25.

“There was nothing close to a hit,” Cota said. “The closest thing was a fly out, a soft liner to center field. . . . When he got deep in the count, he made great pitches when he had to.”

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Canyons again is cruising in WSC men’s golf.

The Cougars lead the conference with a 27-3 record after winning the WSC match on Monday with a school-record 351 at Marshall Canyon Golf Course in La Verne. The previous mark, established last season, was 358.

Freshman Tommy Barber, who finished second with a four-under-par 67, and freshman Anthony Harju, who placed third with a 68, paced the defending state champions.