Defensive Miscues Down Owls in Game One

Walnut, CA -- The scoreboard said just three errors, but the miscues were a plenty on Saturday night at Mt. San Antonio College. It all added up to doom the Owls as they fell to the host Mounties in five innings 11-3. 

You couldn't have scripted a better start for Citrus on Saturday night. On the second pitch of the game, sophomore Sara Moore crushed the ball over the center field fence to give Citrus a 1-0 lead. Two at bats later, freshman Erinn Jaramillo drew a one out walk, and two more at bats after that, sophomore Arianna Sanchez made it 3-0 with a homer over the left field fence.

It was all downhill for Citrus after that. The Mounties rallied with a score in the bottom of the first, but things didn't start to snowball for the Owls until the third. With one on and one out, the Owls botched a routine bunt when the player at covering missed the bag. In the same play Citrus should have had a third out, when the runner at second tried to score, but got caught in a run down. The Owls failed to make the throw back to third, and allowed the runner to get back safely putting runners on the corners with one out. 

Mt. SAC made them pay, as three runs eventually scored and the Owls trailed 4-3. In the bottom of the fourth, another error led to two unearned runs, and by the time the fifth rolled around, all momentum was firmly planted in the Mounties corner. In the fifth, Mt. SAC scored four of its five runs with two outs ending the game two innings early. 

With the loss, Citrus falls to 27-14. If the Owls are to advance to the Super Regionals for the second straight year they'll have to win twice on Sunday. That journey starts at 2:00 PM again at Mt. SAC.