Huskies Snap Skid with All-Around Effort, Roll Past LA Harbor 10–1
(written via AI... mostly)
thumbnail by Mario Villegas
East Los Angeles College baseball (9-21, 5-9) turned an early scoreless pitchers' duel into a convincing conference win Wednesday afternoon, erupting for nine runs across the fourth and fifth innings to defeat LA Harbor College (10-19-1, 5-9), 10–1, at ELAC.
After three quiet innings, the Huskies broke through in the bottom of the fourth and never looked back, finishing with 16 hits and solid pitching to improve to 9–21 overall and 5–9 in South Coast Conference play.
Big Fourth Sets the Tone
ELAC finally cracked the scoreboard in the fourth inning, using patience and pressure to manufacture runs. With runners aboard, John Gonzalez reached on an error that brought home the game's first run, and Alex Sotelo followed with an RBI single. Harbor then induced Jose Guzman to hit into a 5-4-3 double play that erased Sotelo but allowed Adrian Rodriguez to score from third. Israel Espinoza capped the inning with an RBI double to left, pushing the lead to 4–0.
Offense Explodes in the Fifth
The Pack truly blew the game open in the fifth, tallying five runs on four extra-base hits.
Gonzalez delivered the biggest swing of the day, launching a two-run homer to left that took everyone - including himself - by a bit of a surprise, his first long ball of the year. Camden Conklin followed with a towering two-run triple — his second three-bagger of the season — before Espinoza added another RBI single to make it 9–0. Espinoza finished the day 2-3 with three RBIs including a sacrifice fly.
Complete Effort on the Mound
It's been awhile since the home Green has turned in a good overall pitching performance. Right-hander Daniel Quiroz earned the win (2-2), tossing seven strong innings - scattering eight hits and allowing one unearned run with a strikeout and no walks. He consistently worked ahead of the count and induced ground balls as the ELAC defense turned three double plays behind him.
William Lopez closed the door with two scoreless innings of relief, allowing just one hit.
HUSKY BITS
Including Gonzalez's big day at the plate, East LA's offense was balanced and relentless:
- LF John Gonzalez: 2-for-5, HR, 2RBI, 2 runs
- 1B Camden Conklin: 2-for-3, triple, 2RBI, 2 runs
- CF Alex Sotelo: 2-for-5, RBI, run, stolen base
- RF Mahki Clark: 2-for-5, 2 runs, stolen base
- C Marcus Orizaba: 2-for-3 with two walks
UP NEXT:
ELAC will go for the rubber game of this three-game set on Saturday at noon, as LA Harbor will host them at Carson HS.