VC Holds Off Pierce for 4th Straight WSC Win

The Pirate baseball team held leads of 6-1 and 10-5 against Los Angeles Pierce Tuesday at Pirate Park before scoring a run in the bottom of the eighth for an 11-10 victory over the Brahmas. JR Godinez went 3-5 with a triple, three runs batted in and two runs scored and Andrew Savage had a pair of hits while scoring once and knocking in two. Nick Schnopp contributed two hits and three RBI as VC (13-13, 8-5) won with a run in their final at-bat for the third time during their four-game winning streak.

The Pirates got off to a fast start with a pair of runs in the bottom of the first inning. Godinez led off with a single and moved to second on Reiss Calvin's groundout to first base. John Oleson was hit by a pitch and Casey Turturici walked to load the bases. Schnopp hit a sacrifice fly to center field to score Godinez and Savage followed with an RBI single to score Oleson for the 2-0 lead.

After the Brahmas scored one in the third, VC broke the game open with a four-run fourth inning. Ramon Torres and Garrick Levesque led off with back-to-back singles and Julien Monks moved the runners up 90 feet with a sacrifice. Godinez grounded out to second to score Torres, then Calvin walked and Oleson was hit by a pitch after a pitching change. Turturici walked in a run and Schnopp followed with a two-RBI single to complete the rally.

Pierce then countered by closing the gap to 6-5 in the top of the fifth.

Ventura expanded their lead in the sixth with another pair of runs. Godinez led off with a single and stole second. Calvin knocked Godinez in with a triple, then scored when Turturici grounded out to first base.

The Pirates added a pair of insurance runs in the bottom of the seventh. Savage reached base on an error and Monks was hit by a pitch two outs later. Godinez delivered the clutch hit, a two-run triple to make it 10-5 for VC.

Those insurance runs became important for Ventura in the eighth, as LAPC plated five runs in the top half of the frame to tie the score at 10-10. 

Ventura had an answer, however, scoring the eventual game-winning run in the bottom of the eighth. Oleson was hit by a pitch to lead off and went to second an out later when Schnopp singled. Savage then provided the game-winning RBI with a single to score Oleson.

Jake Read had a slid start, throwing five innings and giving up five runs with only one earned. Timmy Adams and Harun Pelja each threw an inning of scoreless relief, with Pelja earning the win. Sebastian Garcia pitched a scoreless ninth inning to pick up the save.

The Pirates will be the "visiting" team at Pirate Park on Thursday March 31, playing the second game of the series against LA Pierce. First pitch is scheduled for 2:30 pm.