Riverside battery takes charge, 6-4

Barry Faulkner

The Orange Coast College baseball team will get three days off to

recharge its batteries after visiting Riverside’s battery helped the

Tigers charge past the Pirates, 6-4, Thursday.

Riverside freshman pitcher Tom Hanson struck out a career-high 12

in his first collegiate complete game, while sophomore battery mate

Andy Bouchie belted three home runs, all with a runner aboard, to key

the Tigers’ Orange Empire Conference triumph.

It was the third straight conference loss for OCC (15-12-1, 6-4-1

in conference), since the Pirates defeated Cypress on March 31 to

move into sole possession of first place.

Meanwhile, Riverside (17-9, 5-6), which topped the visiting

Pirates, 5-4, Tuesday, has won seven of its last nine.

Bouchie, an All-CIF Southern Section catcher at Arlington High who

missed a handful of games to start the season while recovering from a

broken left ankle, entered the week in a 1-for-10 slump. But he went

3 for 4 with a double, a walk and one RBI Tuesday, then erupted for

what he called a career day Thursday. His seven RBIs against OCC the

last two games nearly doubled the nine he had posted in 72 at-bats,

heading into this week.

Bouchie launched a bomb well over the left-field fence with two

outs in the first, then yanked his second homer of the game, only his

third of the season, inside the left-field foul pole in the third.

“The first two homers actually weren’t bad pitches,” OCC Coach

John Altobelli said. “Our catcher told me the first one was about

four or five inches outside. [Bouchie, who finished 4 for 4] just

hooked it over the fence.”

Altobelli said Bouchie’s third homer, an opposite-field poke to

right center, was the result of a mix-up.

“We wanted to try to bust [Bouchie] in, but our catcher thought

the sign was for the pitch to be outside,” Altobelli said. “That one

cost us.”

Bouchie’s third dinger doubled the visitors’ 4-2 lead to 6-2,

which proved enough for Hanson.

“Good pitching beats good hitting, any time,” Altobelli said.

“[Hanson, who improved to 4-3] got three pitches over for strikes.

When you’re doing that, I don’t care if you’re the 1927 Yankees,

you’re going to have a tough time hitting against that.”

OCC, which got on the board with RBI singles by Matt Cline and

Banda in the third, rallied for two in the fifth on back-to-back

doubles by Steven Lajkowicz and Danny Gonzales, then, three batters

later, a Banda sacrifice fly.

But Hanson, whose longest previous outing this spring had been 7

1/3 innings and who had not fanned more than eight in nine previous

starts, retired 10 of the final 11 he faced, including the last eight

in order.

Hanson retired the first six hitters, striking out the side in the

second. He also fanned the side in the third and whiffed the first

two in the fourth, before the Pirates ended his string of eight

consecutive outs via the strikeout with Robby Slater’s lineout to

right.

“I’ve never seen [Hanson] throw as hard as he did today,” Bouchie

said of the 6-foot-6 right-hander. “He was throwing harder in the

ninth inning than he was earlier in the game.”

Clear, who tossed a complete-game, five-hit shutout in the

Pirates’ 11-0 win over Riverside March 5, absorbed his first loss in

six decisions.

Gonzales was 3 for 3 for the Pirates, while Lajkowicz contributed

a pair of doubles to the hosts’ seven-hit attack. Lajkowicz and

Gonzales, hitting in the Nos. 8 and 9 spots in the order, each scored

twice for the hosts.

Gonzales hit a one-out single in the seventh, but was erased on a

fielder’s choice and Hanson ended the threat with a strikeout.

The Nos. 4-7 hitters for OCC were a combined 0 for 15.

The Pirates also received scoreless relief innings from Justin

Peterson (seventh), Mark Haderlein (eighth) and Luke Beck (ninth).

Haderlein surrendered a leadoff double and a stolen base, but

recorded two strikeouts and a groundout to leave the runner stranded

at third.

“We’ve been pitching pretty well all season,” said Altobelli, who

lamented his team’s offense has struggled of late. “Haderlein’s

inning was great, especially having that runner at third with no outs

and leaving him there.”

With a bye on Saturday, Altobelli said he will let his players get

away from the game over the weekend, before returning to practice

Monday in preparation for Tuesday’s home conference clash against

Fullerton.

Shortstop Jason Rodriguez was 2 for 5 with a double and scored

twice to add to the Tigers’ offensive thrust.

Riverside left just two runners on, while Orange Coast had a mere

four men left on base.

Orange Empire Conference

Riverside 6,

Orange Coast 4

Score by Innings

*--*

RCC 2 0 2 0 2 0 0 0 0 - 6 9 0

OCC 0 0 2 0 2 0 0 0 0 - 4 7 1

*--*

Hanson and Bouchie; Clear, Peterson (7), Haderlein (8), Beck (9)

and Banda. W -- Hanson, 4-3. L -- Clear, 5-1. 2B -- Rodriguez (RCC),

Crancer (RCC), Lajkowicz (OCC) 2, Gonzales (OCC), Nelson (RCC). HR --

Bouchie (RCC) 3.