The Santa Barbara Foresters brushed aside a brief two game losing skid to defeat the Conejo Oaks, 4-1, on a beautiful, sunny afternoon at Caesar Uyesaka Stadium. The win is the Sters’ third straight over the Oaks, paced by a pitching staff that struck out ten and lowered the team’s ERA to 2.34.
Making his fifth start of the season was Sam Houston State’s Andrew Godial, who came off a masterful performance in the Sters’ Rawlings Cup Championship victory. The southpaw shined again today, going seven innings without giving up an earned run to record his fourth win of the season. Godial’s seven strikeouts give him thirty-four on the season, and he now has an ERA of 2.12.
The Foresters started the scoring in the bottom of the second inning, as Ryan O’Hearn and Shane Hoelscher hit a pair of doubles and Austin Darby singled to make the score 2-0. O’Hearn doubled again in the fourth to give him eight on the season, making him the team leader for the 2013.
Godial had a no-hitter through four innings before the Oaks tallied two singles in the top of the fifth, marking the first legitimate offensive threat for Conejo. The Sters were able to avoid any damage however, as a running catch by Darby and a nice play in the 5-hole by Keaton Jones kept the Oaks off the scoreboard.
Santa Barbara used small ball to add on to their lead in the bottom half of the fifth frame, as four walks, one single, and five steals allowed the Foresters to score two more runs and extend their lead to four. Steven Reveles led the charge, hitting a RBI single and stealing two bases before scoring the second run of the inning.
The Oaks were only able to muster one run in the final four innings of the game, as Godial continued to cruise and the Sters bullpen kept Conejo’s bats quiet.
Patrick Weigel needed just five pitches to get through the eighth, and Hunter Lemke finished the game with a couple of strikeouts in the ninth. The save is Lemke’s fifth this season, as he has now pitched fourteen innings without giving up an earned run.
Ryan O’Hearn is now hitting 0.462 over his last seven games with eight extra base hits and eight RBIs, helping Santa Barbara win five games in that span.
Austin Darby also made a large contribution to the Sters’ offense, getting on base all three times he came to the plate while scoring and driving in a run.
The Foresters are now 27-11-1 overall and 16-11 in California Collegiate League play, tying them with the San Luis Obispo Blues for first in the CCL North. The Sters are back in action Tuesday at Conejo.
