Delta Baseball Advances to Region XII Championship Game

Delta College advanced to the Region XII Championship game tomorrow after winning a pair of games today.  Playing in Avon, Ohio at Sprenger Stadium, the Pioneers beat Lorain County Community College 7-5 and downed Schoolcraft College 4-3 in 10 innings.

Down 5-4 in the bottom of the eighth against Lorain, Randy Rangel doubled to lead off the inning and scored on a Matt Fisher double to tie it.  Aaron Esparza would eventually score Fisher on a suicide squeeze to give Delta the lead for good.  Kane Bourbina was the winning pitcher to even his record at 2-2 on the year.  Drew Schultz threw the first seven innings giving up zero earned runs on just two hits while striking out seven.  Cam Fowler had two hits and scored twice while Mitch Morley had three hits.  Bourbina had two hits and two RBI while Rangel had a single and a double.  Fisher went three for four.  

In their game against Schoolcraft, Delta took a 1-0 in the second on a Randy Rangel squeeze bunt that scored Danny Diaz.  Schoolcraft tied it in the fifth and took the lead in the seventh, 2-1.  The Pioneers answered in the eighth, though, as Aaron Esparza reached on a hit and scored on a Mitch Morley single to tie it 2-2.   Cam Fowler would then score the go-ahead run when Kane Bourbina singled him home.  

Schoolcraft tied it at 3-3 in the bottom of the eighth and neither team scored in the ninth to force extra innings.  In the top of the tenth,  Bourbina singled and stole second base with two outs.  Dylan Steinke hit a grounder to third but when the throw went awry, Bourbina was able to score the go-ahead run and make it 4-3.  Jake Wright would relieve Jeff Wright in the ninth and then throw the tenth, striking out the final hitter to pick up the win.  He is now 4-2 on the year.

Jeff Wright threw eight innings, giving up three earned runs on five hits and striking out five.  Offensively, Delta was led by Fowler, Morley, Bourbina, Diaz and Steinke, each with two hits.  

Delta's record is now 21-27-1 on the season with the wins.  Should they win one more this weekend, they will host next weekend's Super Regional and play the best two-out-of-three for a chance to advance to the College World Series for the second consecutive season.