Warriors Drop Opener to Glendale, Defeat Cerritos at Super Regional

NORWALK, Calif. --- No. 9 El Camino College split two games on day one of the Cerritos Super Regional on Thursday afternoon at Kincaid Field.

The Warriors opened the day with a forgettable performance against No. 5 seed Glendale but bounced back to fight another day with a win over the host No. 4 Falcons.

No. 5 Glendale 23, No. 9 Warriors 7

The Warriors fell behind in the first inning and things only got worse from there as the Vaqueros scored in every inning except the fourth.

The big blow came in the second as the Vaqueros scored eight times to take a 10-0 lead and essentially put the game away.

The Warriors' pitching staff struggled all day as four pitchers combined to walk 12 batters and allow 17 hits.

On the other side, the offense managed to score seven runs but struck out 14 times. Lucas Bonham went 3-for-5 while Caden Lewis entered as a substitution and went 2-for-3 with a home run to provide the lone bright spots for ECC in game one of the day.

No. 9 Warriors 8, No. 4 Cerritos 5

Facing elimination, the Warriors overcame a pair of deficits and used a three-run seventh inning to pull away and defeat the host Falcons.

Bonham continued to swing a hot bat as he went 2-for-5 with three RBIs. His triple in the fourth inning scored Ryan Matsukawa to cut a 2-0 deficit in half and then he scored on a sacrifice fly from Matt Hammond to knot things up at 2-2.

In the seventh with the score tied 3-3, Aden Laureano ambushed Falcons' starter and SCC Freshman of the Year Noah Andrunas, launching the first pitch over the left-field fence to give the Warriors their first lead of the entire day. It was just Laureano's second homer of the season but provided a big spark as Bonham would follow with a clutch two-run double to right-center later in the inning to make it 6-3.

The pitching staff made that lead stand up as Cameron O'Neill went seven innings and allowed four runs, three earned, on seven hits. He walked three and struck out four.

Slater Nunez entered in the eighth and picked up his ninth save of the season, allowing one run on two hits while striking out three.

 The Warriors will return to Kincaid Field on Friday afternoon and take on Glendale for a second time. The Warriors must win to advance to Saturday. If Glendale beats Cerritos in the first game of the day, the Vaqueros will be playing for a trip to the next round of the playoffs. A loss against the host Falcons and the Vaqueros will also be facing elimination. First pitch for the Warriors is set for 3 p.m. unless the first game runs long.