The article below originally appeared in the San Mateo Daily Journal and is being reprinted with permission.
With one month remaining in the community college baseball regular season, College of San Mateo fell to third place in the Coast Conference Golden Gate with a 9-6 loss to Mission College Tuesday at Bulldog Stadium.
With the win, Mission (6-3 Coast Golden Gate, 17-11 overall) leapfrogs into second place, a half game ahead of CSM in the standings.
The Bulldogs (6-4, 19-10) entered play riding a six-game winning streak, but couldn’t overcome a glut of early runs by Mission. The Saints rallied for five in the top of the first and added three in the third. CSM starting pitcher Sean Prozell lasted just 2 2/3 innings, allowing eight runs (seven earned) on seven hits to take the loss. The freshman right-hander’s record falls to 5-2.
CSM clawed its way back, scoring a run in the first, two in the fourth, and one each in the sixth and seventh to close the deficit to 8-6. The Bulldogs’ best chance came in the seventh by loading the bases with two outs. After sophomore Kevin Jordan drew a bases-loaded walk, however, Nick Knecht flew out to right field to end the threat.
The Bulldogs would never again get the potential tying run to the plate.
Chris Papapietro and Angelo Bortolin, each with three hits, paced the Bulldogs’ 11-hit day. Papapietro hit a solo home run in the bottom of the ninth, his second of the year. Bortolin produced two doubles. Brad Diggle and Ryan Gault had three hits each for Mission.
With 10 games remaining in the regular season, CSM still has plenty of control over its own destiny. On April 12 and 14, the Bulldogs play a two-game series with first-place Chabot, currently pacing CSM by two games in the Coast Golden Gate standings. The Bulldogs close the season April 24 and 26 with a two-game set against Mission.
With one month remaining in the community college baseball regular season, College of San Mateo fell to third place in the Coast Conference Golden Gate with a 9-6 loss to Mission College Tuesday at Bulldog Stadium.
With the win, Mission leapfrogs into second place, a half game ahead of CSM in the standings.
