By Kyle Howie
The Foresters break out late in the game to secure the homestand sweep against the Inland Valley Bucs, 7-3. A strong, 5-run 7th inning from the ‘Sters put them on top to cap off the weekend with a win.
Eamonn Lance and Jalin Flores continue to hit the ball and drive in key runs consistently. Lance had an RBI double and an RBI single, and Flores had two RBI singles. The ‘Sters’ bats continue to shine no matter what arms they face.
As usual, the pitching kept the Foresters in the game by only allowing 3 runs on 3 hits. Samuel Garewal pitched the first 3 innings and gave up 2 unearned runs. Zack Erdman, Mason Koch, Sean Youngerman, and Blake Pivaroff all came in from the bullpen and combined to only allow 1 run on 2 hits.
Let’s see how the ‘Sters cracked it open. Right off the bat, Kevin Michaels led off the bottom of the first with a triple and Lance drove him in with an RBI double. Flores knocked in Lance with a single of his own, which gave the Foresters a quick 2-0 lead.
In the 3rd inning, the Bucs scored 2 runs off 2 walks from Garewal. These mistakes would tie the game and give the Bucs new-found hope after not recording a hit in the first two innings. Schumaker, again, answered the call in the 5th and gave the Bucs a 3-2 lead. He grounded into a fielder’s choice which allowed Noah Rodriguez to touch home from 3rd base.
The Foresters’ offense was going to break out, it was just a matter of when. On Sunday, they chose to make ‘Sters’ fans wait until the 6th inning before putting up 5 runs. P.K. Walsh kicked off the scoring with an RBI single to center and Max Belyeu scored from third base to bind the score up at 3-3. Soon after, Greg Pace walked with the bases loaded to take a one-run lead and Walsh then scored off a Gianni Horvat fielder’s choice to short. Rylan Galvan raced home on an attempt by the Bucs to catch Horvat who stole second. Lance capped off his big day with an RBI single that drove in Horvat from second base. The massive 6th would be the difference in the 7-3 contest.
The winning streak continues for the Foresters and was stretched to 7 after Sunday’s victory. Manager, Bill Pintard, reiterated that the key to the win streak is getting on the board early and first. The ‘Sters have scored first in 7 out of 11 games and they have won 7 of those. Coach Pintard is also pleased with the team’s ability to hit with 2 outs and drive in runners in scoring position. Pintard also stated that defense and pitching win games. He said the defense has been sharp and the pitchers have been attacking guys. The Foresters have been drawing walks and cashing in on these miscues from opposing pitchers. Pintard has also been surprised by Pitcher Sean Youngerman and his ability to be a late-inning weapon. Two other bright spots for the ‘Sters have been Jalin Flores and Daniel Patterson. They are always putting the ball in play and are in the middle of the scoring, described Pintard.
The ‘Sters seem to be unstoppable at the moment and will look to carry their momentum into a big series with the Orange County Riptide on Tuesday, June 27th at 7:00 p.m. The Foresters will need their big-time pitching and timely hitting against the first-place Riptide. Game one of the series will be played at the Great Park in Orange County. The game can be heard live on AM 1290 radio; or listen online or stream live via the Foresters’ website, www.sbforesters.org.
