Pitcher Drops the Ball in 5-4 Loss to Pirates

The Dons turned a double play to close out the eighth inning, but it was not enough to spark a late rally for the team. / Mitch Welch / el Don

By Mitch Welch

Orange Coast College right fielder Tommy Bell stole home after capitalizing on a Dons’ throwing error in the fifth inning Tuesday, leading to a 5-4 victory against Santa Ana College.

Dons pitcher Logan Roberts missed a routine toss back from catcher Cody Bistline when it tipped the top of his glove. With nobody backing up the play, outfielder Tommy Bell scored easily on a throwing error.

“Fortunately for us, their catcher threw one away to the pitcher and for us, that was the winning run,” Pirates Head Coach John Altobelli said.

The Dons were in scoring position throughout eight innings with 11 hits, but failed to score, stranding 11 players on base.

“Leading up to this game we’ve done a pretty good job of picking up guys on base in scoring position and capitalizing on those opportunities but today just wasn’t that good,” Dons Co-Head Coach Bryan Harris said.

Sophomore shortstop Garret Brown’s two-RBI double in the first inning gave the Dons an early lead. A seventh inning grounder driving in Alex Mascarenas gives Brown 21 RBIs this season, tying him with Sophomore Daniel Martinez for the team lead.

“He’s a hard nose player. He’s not going to have the best at bats sometimes, he’s not going to look the prettiest but he gets the job done,” Harris said.

The Dons won against the Pirates 8-6 Saturday when freshman Cameron Baranek scored off an OCC throwing error in the seventh inning.

The Dons play at 2 p.m. Thursday against visiting Fullerton College.