Cougars Use Rally to Sink Pirates 11-8

By Jesse Muñoz/COC Sports Information Director 

College of the Canyons used an eight-run fifth inning to surge ahead of visiting Ventura College, then received four strong innings of relief from freshman Josh Yosfan to sink the Pirates 11-8 at Cougar Field on Friday.

Canyons (4-7) has now won three of its last four with the victory over Ventura (4-8) getting the Cougars back in the win column after a road loss at Sana Ana College on Tuesday.

The Cougars took a brief 1-0 on DJ Kougher's sac fly in the first inning that brought Ryan Camacho home.

The Pirates answered, however, with four runs, two earned, in the third inning to eventually chase COC starter Kyle Cop and put the game at 4-1. Cop allowed seven hits and struck out a batter in his three frames of work.

Tafton Hensley drove home the second Canyons run in the home half of the third with another sacrifice fly that allowed Mikey Kane to score and bring the score to 4-2.

Ventura starter Hunter Jones fared well through most of his four innings of work until things began to unravel in the fifth.

Jones struck out the first batter of the inning before Doyle Kane singled to start the rally. Kougher was awarded first after being hit by the pitch then Hensley singled to load the basses. Steven Gonzalez followed by promptly delivering a two-run single to draw within a run at 5-4.

After a Ventura pitching change, and another hit batter, Alex Ballesteros singled home the third run of the inning to tie the game. Jovan Camacho then joined the party with an RBI single of his own to go ahead 6-5.

With two outs Mikey Kane, who originally led off the inning, walked to bring home another run and the Cougars were on the charge.

But the greatest damage came after a two-error sequence by the Pirates allowed Doyle Kane to reach base, and eventually come around to third, on a three-run infield throwing error that also cleared the bases and provided Canyons a 10-6 advantage. 

Doyle Kane added another RBI single in the seventh for the final Canyons run of the contest.

Ventura tried to make things interesting with a pair of runs in the eighth, and another in the ninth, but it was too little too late as the Cougars held on for the 11-8 victory.

Yosfan (1-1) picked up the win for his four innings of work which included three hits, a lone run and one strike out. 

Xavier Stoker tossed two innings of relief and allowed a pair of earned runs, issued one walk and struck out four.

Hunter Jones took the loss for Ventura on a day that the Pirates employed seven different hurlers.

CANYONS TOP PERFORMERS

• Jovan Camacho – 2-for-3, BB, 2 runs, RBI
• Doyle Kane - 2-for-5, run, RBI
• DJ Kougher – 2-for-3, run, RBI
• Steven Gonzalez – 1-for-5, run, 2 RBI
• Mikey Kane – 2 BB, 2 runs, RBI

UPCOMING SCHEDULE

Canyons is back in action Tuesday, Feb. 22 vs. Santa Ana College. That game is scheduled for a 2 p.m. first pitch. The Dons (10-0-1) handed the Cougars a 5-1 road loss on Feb. 17.

COC baseball home games will be live streamed to fans on YouTube via the Cougars Sports Network. Continue to monitor www.COCathletics.com for livestream links or subscribe to the COC Athletics channel on YouTube. 

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. 

—Photo by Mari Kneisel/COC Sports Information