Warriors Down Ventura on Friday

TORRANCE, Calif. --- El Camino College secured a 5-2 non-conference victory over Ventura on Friday afternoon at Warrior Field.

The game, which was rescheduled and moved from its original date on Thursday at Ventura due to inclement weather, was a close affair but Warriors pitching made sure the lead held up as they combined to allow two runs on seven hits.

Adrian Pineda picked up his second win of the season on the bump as he tossed six innings and allowed two runs on six hits with two walks and seven strikeouts. He surrendered both runs, a walk and half of the Pirates' hits in the third inning. In his other five innings of work, he scattered three hits and struck out six. He retired six of the last eight batters he faced with one baserunner reaching on an error and the other on a single, but he was erased with a double play one batter later in the fifth.

Offensively the Warriors got three hits from Lucas Bonham while Cameron O'Neil went 2-for-4 with three RBI.

The Warriors jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first inning as they put together five consecutive hits in the frame including a two-run triple from O'Neil to make it 3-0. Matt Hammond also had an RBI single in the frame.

The Pirates rallied for two runs off Pineda in the third, all with two outs. They got an RBI single from Grant Rodriguez and then Peter Dufau doubled to left to score another run and put Rodriguez at third with the game-tying run. But Pineda got Daniel Aguilera to chase a pitch in the dirt for a strikeout to end the threat.

The Warriors would respond in their half of the third as Bonham and Hammond led off the frame with a single and a double respectively. Caden Lewis would hit a sacrifice fly to plate Bonham and move Hammond to third and then O'Neil singled in Hammond to make it 5-2.

In the eighth, the Pirates got the first two batters on base with consecutive walks from Warriors reliever Tyler Tellenbach. Slater Nunez would slide from shortstop to the pitching mound to take over in relief and he proceeded to retire the next three hitters with two strikeouts and a flyout.

Nunez would retire the side in the ninth to pick up his second save of the season.

The two teams will return to action on Saturday afternoon for game two of the series at Warrior Field. First pitch is set for noon.