The San Bernardino Valley College baseball team used a couple of quick starts - and big innings - to open the season with a pair of wins over Los Angeles Mission College - 9-4 Friday at home and 9-1 Saturday in Los Angeles.
Friday afternoon, the Wolverines took over in the third inning, sending 10 players to the plate to score five times. Christofher Melano led off with a single and stole second. Diego Sotelo singled, moving Melano to third, with Sotelo taking second on the play. A wild pitch scored Melano, sending Sotelo to third, from where he scored on a Joseph Guzman single. Guzman advanced to second on a sacrifice, then took third on another wild pitch. Adrian Diaz then hit the ball to first baseman Hudson Story, who went home with the ball, but threw it away, allowing Guzman to score and Diaz to take second. Ian Burns followed with a single to score Diaz for a 4-0 lead. The Wolverines tacked on one more with a bases-loaded fielder's choice to make it 5-0 after three.
That turned out to be enough, as the San Bernardino pitching staff and defense held the Eagles to six hits, while combining to strike out 11.
Burns ended Friday's game 2-for-5 with a double and three runs batted in. Sotelo posted a 2-for-3 performance, scoring once and adding an RBI.
The Wolverines jumped out to an 8-0 lead after two innings Saturday and didn't look back. Guzman led off the game with a single, then took second on a wild pitch, then moved to third on a flyout by Sotelo. Diaz followed by grounding the ball to third baseman Edward Beruman, whose throw home was wild, allowing Guzman to score and Diaz to move to second. Burns followed with a triple to right, scoring Diaz, then he scored on a groundout by Tanner Horwath for the early 3-0 lead.
SBVC did all of its damage in the second inning with one out. Back-to-back walks to David Trujillo and Guzman started things and Sotelo loaded the bases with an infield single. Diaz singled to score Trujillo and Guzman, and Burns followed with another single to score Sotelo. Horwath singled home Diaz and Isaiah Pacheco was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Jeremiah Acosta then hit a single to shallow left to score Burns to make it 8-0.
Again, the defense and pitching staff stayed strong. Five SBVC pitchers scattered six hits - the only blemish an eighth-inning solo home run by Andrew Seidel - and the defense posted an error-free game.
SBVC heads into the new week with four games on the schedule over five days, with a game Tuesday at Citrus before hosting Ohlone College for a three-game series Thursday through Saturday.