Arms Race

Glendora, CA -- Heading into Friday afternoon's contest with Rio Hondo, it was the Roadrunners who had the more highly touted arms, and the Roadrunners who were ranked #12 in the CCCBCA Pre-Season Poll. None of that mattered, as the Owls won the arms race with a 5-1 win over Rio Hondo.

Citrus freshman Cameron Rodriguez set the tone early on the hill for the Owls. After giving up a single to the very first batter he faced, Rodriguez settled in and found a groove, plowing through the Rio Hondo lineup and not giving up another hit until the fifth inning. Rodriguez finished with an impressive line of six innings of work, scattering three hits, a run, and a pair of walks, while striking out two, on his way to his first collegiate win.

With Rodriguez shutting down the Roadrunner bats, the Owls looked steady at the plate. The top of the order showed patience in loading up the bases to start the bottom of the first. After that sophomore Michael Bradley hit an RBI single back up the middle to make it 1-0 and a few at bats later freshman Mark Segat hit a sacrifice fly to right field to make it 2-0 after one.

The Owls would put runners on the bases in each and every inning except for the third. In the fourth, the Owls were able to tack on three more runs, thanks to a RBI single back up the middle by sophomore Nathan Virgen, and a two RBI double up the right field line off the bat of sophomore Matthew Reynoso.

That was more than enough for the Citrus pitching staff. In the seventh sophomore Dani Schlarmann II found himself in a bit of trouble after giving up a walk and a double to the first and third batters he faced. With runners on second and third, Schlarmann dug deep and struck out batter looking and then got a ground out to end the threat.

Citrus faced a threat again in the eighth, when the Roadrunners moved a runner all the way to third. Needing one out, the Owls turned to sophomore Jayson De La Pena, who came in and struck out a batter looking to help drive a nail into Rio Hondo's coffin.

In the win, Citrus was led at the plate by Virgen who went 4 for 4 with a run and an RBI. Sophomore Brandon Castaneda went 2 for 4 in his first start of the year, while Segat was 1 for 2 with a run and an RBI. The win also makes Citrus 4-2 against Rio Hondo since 2008.

With the win, Citrus improves to 2-1 on the year. The Owls will be right back at it on Saturday when they hit the road to take on Cerritos College for a 12:00 PM start.