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Coyotes unable to get ‘timely hits,’ fall at Rio Hondo 6-5 in 10

By Kyle Kensing, Sports Editor, The Daily Independent

Cerro Coso catcher Kyle Hanson in Foothill Conference action earlier this season. The Coyotes host Rio Hondo Saturday at noon. Daily Independent File Photo By Mike Delaney

Cerro Coso and Rio Hondo battled back forth, exchanging the lead several times yesterday, but ultimately RHCC topped the Coyotes 6-5 in extra innings.

Coso head coach Dick Adams said his team “shot [itself] in the foot” with a lack of timely hits in the 10-inning loss.

“We play our game, our brand of ball, we beat these guys,” Adams said.

Coso (14-15, 10-3 Foothill Conference) in two separate innings had base runners, but couldn’t quite squeeze out enough runs to put Hondo on the mat.

The Coyotes’ big inning came in the fifth when they scored three runs.

Dusty Romero and Andrew Hill got on board with back-to-back errors.

Cameron White singled a shot that scored Romero, with Andrew Masojc following right after with an RBI single of his own.

Mark Sayas kept it coming, laying down a drag bunt good enough to get on base with no outs.

Zack Wilson scored the next run with a sacrifice fly, but the inning ended on a Jon Proesl strikeout and Tyler Curran flyout.

Adams said that fifth should have produced enough runs to give his team the necessary cushion, but it was not to be.

Hondo meanwhile was able to get the “timely hits” Coso wasn’t — in particular Joe Hannah, who drove in two runs in the seventh and tenth innings — one of which tied the game, the other won it.

Hannah drove one to the left field wall in the bottom of the 10th against reliever Felice Cammisuli, who came on for Kade McAllister.

Jessie Zuber started the game, and went eight innings.

He ended with four earned runs, five runs total, on 12 hits. Zuber struck out four and walked one.

Coso and Rio Hondo are now tied in second place in the conference, making Saturday’s doubleheader at the Dawg Yard all the more important.

Adam Garner takes the ball for the seven inning opener, scheduled for a noon opening pitch.

Aaron Keplinger takes to the mound in the second game.

“Going two out of three in this series would go a long way to finishing second or first in conference,” Adams said.

Friday, March 31, 2006