Oaks Outlast Riptide in CCL Opener

Oaks Outlast Riptide in CCL Opener

By 

Micah Rodriguez

On a beautiful Saturday afternoon, the Conejo Oaks defeated the Orange County Riptide 7–4 at Pirate Park to open up California Collegiate League play. 

Coming off a 15–0 victory in their opening day matchup with the Coastal Dodgers, the Oaks once again jumped on the scoreboard first in the bottom half of the first. 

Lead-off man and right fielder Brandon Contreras led off the game with a single to center field on the 3-2 pitch, and the following batter, second baseman Nate Lopez, singled to right field putting runners on the corners with no outs. Fresh off an opening day blast, center fielder Tyler Antwine delivered an RBI fielder's choice, scoring Contreras from third. 

Right-hander Will Kaczynski got the start on the mound for the Oaks. Very familiar with Pirate Park, Kaczynski spent this past season at Ventura College. The 6' 5' Kaczynski worked three efficient innings, allowing one earned run on three singles and one walk while striking out five. 

"[I] was living and dying by the fastball," Kaczynski said regarding his outing. "It's just trusting [my stuff] and I'm going out there and being a dog."

The Oaks added three more runs in the top of the second. Outfielder Body Grieve led off the inning with a five-pitch walk and third baseman Matthew Witkow reached on an error to give the Oaks two on with nobody out. Middle infielder Grant Rodriguez ripped an RBI double just inside the right field line to score Grieve and put runners on second and third. After a strikeout, Contreras came through with a clutch, two-out, two-strike single to center to score Witkow and Rodriguez and give the Oaks a 4–0 lead. 

After the Riptide got one run back in the top of the third, the Oaks responded with two runs in the bottom half of the inning. First baseman Caden Stillwell led off with a five-pitch walk. With one out, Witkow laced an RBI double in the left-center gap to give the Oaks a four-run cushion once again. With two outs, shortstop Zach Mora lined an RBI single to right fielder, scoring Witkow from third and making it a 6–1 game. 

In relief of Kaczynski, right-hander Landon Martin took the bump for the Oaks. The Riptide scattered four hits in the top of the fifth, but were only able to muster one run after an inning-ending 5-4-3 double play to make it a 6–2 game. Martin settled in and registered a clean inning in the top of the fifth. Martin struck out two in his two innings of work. 

In the bottom of the fifth, Grieve reached on a one-out error. Witkow then smoked his second double of the game just under the first baseman's glove down the right field line to put two runners in scoring position. The next batter, Rodriguez, lifted a sacrifice fly to center field to make it a 7–2 game. 

Right-hander Pierson Howe entered in relief after Martin. Howe allowed one unearned run and struck out one in his only inning of work. 

Right-hander Matthew Sanders' stuff was electric in the top half of the seventh. The Sherman Oaks, California native struck out two in a 1-2-3 inning. 

Left-hander Luke Medhurst came in for the top of the eighth. Hailing from Newbury Park High School, Medhurst allowed one earned run on one hit with two strikeouts in his lone inning. 

With the Oaks holding a 7–4 lead in the top half of the ninth, the Oaks called on 6'7' right-hander Caden Sramek. Known to his teammates as "The Falcon", Sramek included a game-ending 1-2-3 double play to secure a 7–4 victory. 

Contreras paced the Oaks offense from the top of the order, going 3-5 with two RBIs. 

After coaching Contreras the past two seasons at Ventura College, Oaks Head Coach David Soliz has the utmost confidence in him in the leadoff spot. 

"With his skill set, he runs well, swings the bat well, and has a good feel for the strike zone," Soliz said. "That combination makes him a good candidate [for] hitting in [the leadoff] spot."

Named the Player of the Game, Witkow went 2-4 with an RBI, including his first two doubles of the season. In total, the Oaks tallied nine hits and five walks while only striking out four times. 

The Riptide tallied ten hits while the Oaks only registered eight. For Soliz, putting the ball in play is a major part of his philosophy. 

"We talk a lot about development and working quality at-bats," Soliz said. "Everybody wants to get their hits, but what we've focused on so far in the three days we've met is playing team baseball. It's not always about getting the hit. Sometimes a productive out and making the pitcher [throw] a few extra pitches add up."

After defeating the Coastal Dodgers in a scrimmage, the Oaks are now officially 1–0 on the young season. 

The Oaks are back at Pirate Park tomorrow against the MLB Academy Barons. First pitch is at 1 p.m.