COLLEGE ROUNDUP, April 12-18: Momentum building
Apr. 19—The outlook was grim for the Cal State Bakersfield baseball team after Friday night.
Coming off the high of their series win at Hawaii, the Roadrunners had fallen flat in their first game back at Hardt Field, allowing 18 hits and committing three errors in a 12-4 loss to Cal Poly. They had previously lost all six times they entered the second game of a three-game series after an opening defeat, leaving little hope for their ability to recover the next day.
But they bounced back, and did so in dramatic fashion.
Despite losing narrow leads on both Saturday and Sunday, CSUB concluded both games with walk-off singles against the Mustang bullpen, as Stockdale grad and designated hitter Jacob Ruley did the honors in the 10th inning Saturday and third baseman Cody Hendriks wrapped it up in the ninth the next day.
The Roadrunners improved to 14-18 overall with five wins in their last seven, and plenty of momentum to take into a challenging road series with Cal State Fullerton beginning Friday.
CSUB baseball was one of several local teams picking up key victories this past week as they headed into the spring season's final stretch.
Bakersfield College
Baseball: After dropping its series to Antelope Valley with losses on Thursday and Saturday that featured 61 combined runs, the Renegades received a measure of redemption when they beat Citrus on the road Tuesday. Luis Fuentes and Manny Herrera tallied three hits apiece of the Renegades' 13 total, and BC (14-21, 7-9 Western State Conference) held on to limit an eighth-inning rally to two runs and win 6-5. The Renegades will host Citrus Thursday.
Softball: The Renegades extended their winning streak to eight games, sweeping a doubleheader against LA Valley with ease Thursday and then locking down both Allan Hancock and Southwestern on the Jaguars' home field Saturday. BC avenged its early-season loss to the Bulldogs with a 7-2 win powered by Shelbie Valencia's 3-for-4, three-RBI day. The Renegades came home for a crucial conference doubleheader against Canyons Tuesday and came away with just a split, thanks to defensive disparities (five errors by BC, three impressive snags by Cougar outfielder Ashlynn Heck) and a last-minute tag at home plate on Kady Smith in their 6-5 loss. Now 22-12, they will host Sequoias for two more nonconference games Friday.
Tennis: After improving dramatically from last season, both the men's and women's tennis teams fell to Desert in the second round of the playoffs. The men lost 8-1, while the women, who also won a conference title this season, dropped a 6-3 result in Palm Desert.
Miscellaneous and looking ahead: Beach volleyball lost 5-0 to Ventura in Santa Monica ... Men's basketball forward Rahmel Davis committed to play four-year college ball at St. Francis (Ill.), an NAIA school ... Men's golf will contest the conference title in Camarillo next Monday ... Swimming begins its own WSC championship bid Thursday ... Track competes at Antelope Valley Friday for the WSC prelims ... The inaugural state women's wrestling championships take place at Cerritos Saturday.
Cal State Bakersfield
Beach volleyball: In the final lead-up to the Big West Championships this weekend in Hawaii, the Roadrunners took two out of three matches, beating CSUN and Westcliff 4-1 each at home Friday before falling 5-0 to No. 2 USC in Los Angeles Tuesday. Hana Makonova reset CSUB's career wins mark with 43 after she and Sophia Brandstetter beat CSUN's Tasha Mae and Lauren Eknoian (a Bakersfield native). The Roadrunners will enter the conference tournament seeded fourth of seven teams with a 16-8 record, and will face reigning champion Cal Poly, a team it beat on the road but lost to at home, in the first round Friday.
Men's basketball: Rod Barnes' staff continued its active offseason. The school officially unveiled New Mexico State transfer Jaden Alexander, who committed earlier this month (Sacramento State product Cameron Wilbon's official announcement is still pending). CSUB also bolstered its frontcourt by picking up the commitments of Tallahassee Community College's Tom Mark and CSUN's Fidelis Okereke, a familiar face.
Softball: CSUB did not deliver on the promise of its home performance against UC Santa Barbara and got swept again on the road at Cal Poly, scoring just one total run across three games despite 13 total hits. The Roadrunners have now lost 12 straight to fall to 6-32, with just one Big West win, and will host Hawaii for a three-game series beginning Friday.
Track and field: The Roadrunners had a busy week, taking part in three separate meets between last Thursday and Saturday. Hurdler Riley Slayton continued to elevate her performance in her fifth year at CSUB, completing the 400-meter hurdles in a personal-best 59.83 seconds. Julia Stein, Nerissa Thompson and Skyblue Gonzales also set new personal bests. The Roadrunners will head to San Luis Obispo for the Mustang Invitational Friday.
Women's golf: A promising first day saw CSUB tied for fifth out of nine teams thanks to the best conference-tournament round in school history, but the Roadrunners slipped to eighth place by the end of the Big West Championship on Tuesday. Still, they completed a milestone season that featured the program's best-ever scoring average (307.38 strokes).
Miscellaneous and looking ahead: The CSUB women's basketball staff is hosting a youth camp for third- through eighth-graders beginning June 12, with more information available at csubbasketballcamps.com ... Women's soccer added defender Alaina Granger, another international player (from New Zealand) who most recently started as a freshman at UTRGV.
Taft College notes: The Cougars snapped a five-game losing streak, improving to 12-23 with a 7-5 win over Sequoias Tuesday. Owen Hayes went 3-for-3 with a walk and Sebastian Cabeza hit a two-run home run in the victory.
Reporter Henry Greenstein can be reached at 661-395-7374. Follow him on Twitter: @HenryGreenstein.
