Cougars Stay Unbeaten at Home With 3-2 Win Over Pirates

Story and Photo by Jesse Muñoz/COC Sports Information Director

College of the Canyons ace hurler Jacob Lopez turned in another strong start for the Cougars, taking a no-hit bid into the sixth inning to beat visiting Ventura College 3-2 on Thursday.

Sophomore Calvin Estrada clubbed a two-run bomb in the first inning and freshman Josh Arkin followed up with a solo shot in the seventh to provide Canyons with all the offense it would need.

Meanwhile, Lopez (2-1) cruised through the Pirates lineup through the first five frames before finally getting into a jam in the sixth. 

That's when the lefty walked three of the first four batters he faced and eventually surrendered an RBI single to Ventura infielder Rudy Aguilar that cut the COC lead in half at 2-1.

Lopez finished the game with a season-high 10 strikeouts, having allowed two earned runs on five hits and four walks to earn the win.

In his five starts this season Lopez is boasting a 2.97 ERA across 33 and 1/3 innings of work. His 38 strikeouts also rank second in the state.

Canyons (8-5) remains unbeaten at Cougar Field this season where head coach Chris Cota's lineup is averaging just under seven runs each time out. In fact, all eight of the team's wins have come at home. Included in that total are four one-run victories, with two coming by way off the walk-off.

The Cougars will now hit the road to begin a two-game set with Orange Coast College at 12 p.m. on Saturday, then return home to conclude the series on Tuesday.

Stay up to date on all this season's action by following the College of the Canyons Athletic department on social media at @COCathletics on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube.