By Kyle Howie
Foresters leave no room for doubt about their potential as they beat the Inland Valley Pirates 16-1. Everything was clicking tonight for the ‘Sters as they continue their winning streak to 6 games and remain undefeated so far during their homestand.
The pitching was stellar once again for the Foresters. Kolby Kmetko threw his third flawless start in a row putting up another 0 on the scorecard. Threw 5 innings, he allowed just 3 hits, and kept his ERA and an impressive 0. Kmetko picks up his second win of the season and has now thrown 15 straight shutout innings. Hunter Watkins made an appearance for the 6th and 7th innings and only allowed 2 hits and had 4 strikeouts with no runs allowed. Michael Lombardi finished the game with only 1 earned run, 4 strikeouts, and 2 hits allowed. This is the second night in a row where Foresters’ pitching racks up 10 strikeouts in total.
Everyone chimed in on the offensive side of the ball, with the bottom half of the order having a huge night. Rylan Galvan, who drove in 4 runs on two 2 RBI singles, said he was looking to keep his approach simple at the plate which led to him driving in crucial runs for the ‘Sters. In addition, Rocco Garza-Gongora had 2 RBIs and 3 walks, John Newman had 2 RBIs on 2 hits, and Jalin Flores had 3 RBIs on 3 hits.
Unlike yesterday, the Foresters wasted no time taking the lead by putting up two runs in the first two innings. The offense then took a break in the 3rd inning before putting up a 7 spot in the 4th inning featuring a 2 RBI single from Galvan and another 2 RBI single from Flores. This made it a 9-0 ballgame heading into the 5th.
In the bottom of the 5th, Newman scorched a double to center to assist the ‘Sters in scoring 5 runs. Later on in the 8th, Garza-Gongora walked with the bases loaded and Carson Cahoy scored on a wild pitch to capitalize the 15-run victory.
Same story, new day. The Foresters’ pitching shuts the door as the offense breaks it open. They look to sustain their unbeaten home stand tomorrow at 2:00 p.m. against the Inland Empire Bucks. Come support or the game can be heard live on AM 1290 radio; or listen online or stream live via the Foresters’ website, www.sbforesters.org.
