The Pirate baseball team took two of three games at San Diego Mesa Thursday and Friday. Cooper Smith gave up one run and scattered six hits over seven innings to lead VC to a 7-1 win on Thursday. Reiss Calvin then had two hits, including a double, and scored two runs while Haiden Letzing batted in three runs in Friday's nightcap of a doubleheader to move the Pirates (4-5) past the Olympians 11-6.
Ventura 7, San Diego Mesa 1
In the series opener, Smith shut down the Olympians' bats as Calvin's four hits powered the VC offense. Connor Hickey had three RBI and Gage Allen hit in two runs in the Ventura triumph.
After four scoreless columns, the Pirates got on the board first in the top of the fifth inning. Yuki Kawashima and Calvin opened with a pair of singles before Hickey hit a three-run home run.
Mesa hit a lead-off homer in the bottom half of the inning to make it 3-1 for Ventura after five.
Ventura then rallied for four more runs in the seventh. After a walk and two hit batsmen, Allen doubled home Andrew Savage and Omar Santamaria. Kawashima followed with a sacrifice fly to score Tanner Rowe, and Calvin delivered a single to plate Allen.
After a scoreless seventh by Smith, Ryan Sweeney came in to throw a pair of scoreless innings to close out the win for VC.
Ventura 5, San Diego Mesa 9
In Friday's first of two games, the Pirates held a 5-0 lead in the middle of the fourth before allowing nine unanswered runs in the decision. Hickey had three more hits and two more RBI in the game while scoring a pair of runs. Calvin and Allen also had two hits each.
After Calvin led off the game with a single, Hickey had his second home run in as many games, putting the Pirates ahead 2-0 in the top of the first.
Allen doubled home Braeden MacCormic in the second before Letzing grounded out to score Hickey from third base in the following frame. Santamaria doubled to open the fourth, then scored from third on a double steal when MacCormic, who reached base with a single, was thrown out at second.
The Olympians scored once in the bottom of the fourth before hanging a five-spot on the Pirates in the sixth. Mesa then added three runs in the eighth.
Wilson Spinks pitched well through five, but ran into trouble in the sixth inning. He recorded five strikeouts during his 5/2 innings on the mound.
Ventura 11, San Diego Mesa 6
VC jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the first inning, and scored five more runs in the final three frames to pull out a 6-6 tie for the 11-6 win in the series finale. Letzing had a pair of hits with three RBI and scored twice to lead the offense. Jared Hughes got the start on the mound, pitching five complete innings allowing five runs to the Olympians. Ryan Dexter pitched 1.1 innings of scoreless baseball and Livio Bundi threw a pair of innings with four punch outs for his second save of the year.
Letzing hit an RBI single with one out in the first, scoring Calvin and Evan DeVally walked home Hickey. Santamaria hit an RBI single to score Letzing followed by Caden Stillwell reaching base on a fielder's choice to score DeVally after a throwing error on the catcher. Santamaria scored the fifth ruin of the inning when Allen reached first on an error by the shortstop.
Mesa got two runs back in the bottom of the first and scored another in the second.
Letzing walked to open the fifth for Ventura before coming around to score on Aaron McLeod's sacrifice fly.
The Olympians answered with another two runs in the fifth and they tied the game at six with a score an inning later.
Allen doubled and Calvin doubled before Hickey was intentionally walked, all with two outs in the seventh. Mason Reid drew a walk to break the tie and score Allen before Letzing had a two-RBI single to score Calvin and Hickey.
Leading 9-6, VC plated a pair of insurance runs in the top of the ninth. Matthew Beach singles home Calvin before Kawashima, who pinch hit earlier in the frame, scored on a throwing error by the second baseman.
The Pirates next travel to Riverside on Thursday Feb. 16 before hosting the Tigers on Friday Feb. 17 at Pirate Park at 2:00 pm.