Baltimore, MD – Garrett College's baseball team capped a 7-1 week by sweeping Community College of Baltimore County-Essex, 11-4 and 7-4, Sunday afternoon to reach 20 wins before the end of March for the first time in program history.
The Lakers (20-6) used the sweep to tie Frederick Community College (24-4) atop NJCAA Division II Region 20-West with a 12-2 mark. Hagerstown Community College (23-6, 9-3) is close behind in what is shaping up to be a three-team race.
"I've never seen us doing what we're doing offensively in my 30 years of coaching," said GC head coach Eric Hallenbeck, whose squad is batting .361 and averaging 10.5 runs per game.
"We've hit 33 homers in 26 games; we hit 33 all of last year [in 58 games]," added Hallenbeck. "The right guys are coming up in spots where they can drive in runs and they're producing."
Garrett used a seven-run fourth inning to erase a 4-2 Essex lead in the opener. JJ Charlton (2-for-4, run) tied the game with a two-run double, Jonathan Padgett put the Lakers ahead with a sacrifice fly, and Angel Oquendo (two runs) followed with an RBI single.
Brandyn Gonzalez (double, two runs, five RBI) capped the rally with a three-run homer that made it 9-4. Gonzalez hit another three-run shot in the third inning of the nightcap to break a 2-2 tie and put the Lakers in front to stay.
Noah Broadwater (triple, run, RBI), Christian Harrington, and Tristan Kenzevich each had two hits for the Lakers in the nightcap.
Winning pitcher Bryce Madden (3-1) yielded four runs on six hits with two walks and five strikeouts in 6 2/3 innings in the Essex opener. Dylan Burton came on to record the final out after two Knights reached base with two outs.
Dale Boone (2-1) spaced seven hits over six innings while giving up four runs (three earned) in Game 2. He walked two and struck out four. Hunter Dakan pitched a scoreless seventh.
"Bryce and Dale were extraordinary," said Hallenbeck of Sunday's starters.
The Lakers, in a space of about 30 hours, swept a pair of doubleheaders after blowing a six-run, seventh-inning lead in a 12-11 Game 2 loss as part of last Thursday's doubleheader at Potomac State College of West Virginia University.
"We knew we had two big doubleheaders to get ready for and we just couldn't afford to have a letdown after what happened Thursday," said Hallenbeck, whose squad defeated Potomac State, 16-1, in last Thursday's opener. "We did what we needed to do on Saturday [in sweeping CCBC-Dundalk], got up early on Sunday, and made the drive to Essex. That's a tough place to play and we came out with two wins."
The Lakers swept Westmoreland County Community College, 13-0 and 21-2, to start the current hot streak.
Hallenbeck said strong team spirit is playing a role in GC's impressive season.
"It's a good group of guys. They genuinely like each other; they're very good teammates and they pull for each other," he said. "Everyone's been getting involved, and that creates great team chemistry."
GC 13, Dundalk 6
GC 13, Dundalk 3 (5 innings)
McHenry, MD – Angel Oquendo (2-for-3, walk, double, two runs) and Brandyn Gonzalez (3-for-3, three runs, four RBI) each homered and drove in four runs as the Lakers beat CCBC-Dundalk in a five-inning nightcap to complete Saturday's sweep.
Noah Broadwater also homered as part of a 2-for-3 performance for the Lakers, who blew out to an 11-2 lead after two innings to take control.
Ethan Sebold improved to 4-0 on the mound, yielding three runs (one earned) on three hits with two walks and two strikeouts in four innings. Paxton Patronas pitched a scoreless fifth.
In the opener, Dundalk used a four-run fourth to build a 5-3 lead. The Lakers responded with an eight-run explosion in the bottom half of the inning, including a go-ahead sacrifice fly by Christian Harrington.
Gonzalez (2-for-4, run) followed with a two-run double, and Bryce Madden (3-for-4, three runs) drove in two runs with one of his two doubles as GC pulled away.
Tristan Kenzevich (run) went 3-for-4, while JJ Charlton (three runs, three RBI), Easton Rhoten (two runs, two walks), and Jonathan Padgett (run, two RBI) each had two hits as part of Garrett's 16-hit attack.
Warren Bernard, the third of four GC pitchers, earned the win. He yielded one run on three hits with three strikeouts in 2 1/3 innings.
GC 16, PSC 1
PSC 12, GC 11
Keyser, WV – Brandyn Gonzalez hit grand slams in consecutive innings to power the Lakers in Thursday's opener, but Potomac State College of West Virginia University shocked Garrett by scoring an incredible seven runs with two outs in the seventh inning of the nightcap to earn the split.
Gonzalez and Easton Rhoten (double, two runs, two RBI) each went 3-for-4, and Christian Harrington added a double, in the opener. The Lakers used the Gonzalez slams to put together an eight-run second inning and a seven-run third.
Winning pitcher Conner Blake twirled a five-inning, two-hit complete game in the opener, walking two with one strikeout. GC hammered three Catamount pitchers for 16 hits, four for extra bases.
Garrett appeared in control of the nightcap with an 11-5 lead, two outs in the seventh, and a runner on first. The next nine runners all reached base, climaxed by GC reliever Preston Porter's bases-loaded walk to Ryan Conrad that forced in the winning run.
PSC's big inning also included a two-run triple by Braden Sloan, a two-run single by Lex Wescott, an RBI double by Gabe Templeton, and a run-scoring single by Seth Healy. The Catamounts had five hits and took advantage of four walks and a hit batsman during the seventh-inning rally.
GC head coach Eric Hallenbeck lamented the missed opportunity in the nightcap.
"You don't sweep Potomac State at their place very often," he said. "We had a golden opportunity to do it – and we didn't."
Harrington (two runs, three RBI) went 4-for-5 in the nightcap while Rhoten (two runs, RBI) was 2-for-5 with a home run for GC. Noah Broadwater doubled and drove in three runs.
Six Laker pitchers combined to yield 10 hits and nine walks with a pair of hit batsmen.
GC 13, Westmoreland 0
GC 21, Westmoreland 2
Youngwood, PA – Laker Hunter Dakan (2-0) struck out seven and walked two while throwing a six-inning, complete-game, three-hit shutout in last Tuesday's opener.
Angel Oquendo (three runs, two RBI) went 3-for-4 while Bryce Madden (double, triple, run, three RBI) and Jonathan Padgett (three runs, RBI) each added two hits to lead GC's 11-hit attack in Game 1.
Noah Broadwater homered, doubled twice, and drove in seven runs to lead the Lakers in the nightcap. Christian Harrington (homer, three runs, five RBI) and Ty Giblin (double, three runs, RBI) also had three hits apiece.
GC's Ethan Sebold improved to 3-0, holding Westmoreland to two runs on five hits with a walk and two strikeouts in three innings.
Notes: Gonzalez had quite the week. The sophomore outfielder batted .560 (14-for-25) with five homers, 23 RBI, and 14 runs scored in the eight games from last Tuesday through Sunday.
"I've never seen anything like it," said Hallenbeck of Gonzalez's hot streak, which has lifted his batting average to .457 with 12 homers, 44 RBI and 34 runs scored in 26 games. . . .
While Garrett, Frederick, and Hagerstown battle for the Region 20-West crown, Chesapeake College (21-8, 16-2) is breezing through Region 20-East with a five-game lead over second-place CCBC-Catonsville (15-12, 10-6).
PHOTO CUTLINE
Photo by Sara Tabuena
Brandyn Gonzalez homers during last Saturday's game against CCBC-Dundalk. Gonzalez has 12 homers through 26 games this season.
