MESA, Ariz. – The Yavapai College baseball team headed to Sloan Park in Mesa, Arizona, on Friday afternoon for its first pair of official contests in 2023 against the No. 1-ranked Central Arizona College Vaqueros and New Mexico Junior College Thunderbirds. Unfortunately, YC fell to the Vaqueros 4-0 and fell to the Thunderbirds 5-2 to start the season 0-2. 

Game One vs. No. 1-Ranked Central Arizona
The Roughriders and Vaqueros engaged in a pitching duel for the first six and a half innings in game one with Central eventually coming out on top with the aforementioned 4-0 final. 

Freshman righty Dillon Orr took the mound for YC and was exceptional, tossing five innings of shutout ball with four strikeouts while allowing just three hits and one walk. 

Sophomore outfielder Jude Hall led the game off with a double for YC, however, failed to cross the plate before Orr went to work. After Hall's double, the Roughriders wouldn't mount an offensive threat til late in the contest. 

That threat came in the top of the seventh inning after singles off the bats of freshman infielder Pierce Radke and freshman catcher Wailele Kane-Yates brought the go-ahead run to second base with two outs in a 0-0 ballgame. 

Unfortunately, the Vaqueros were able to induce a popup and headed to the bottom of the seventh unscathed. From there, CAC hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the seventh and tallied a trio of singles in the bottom of the eighth for a couple of insurance runs to bring the score to 4-0. 

The Roughriders were then held scoreless in the top of the ninth to bring the game to a close. 

The aforementioned hits by Hall, Radke and Kane-Yates were the only three hits for YC on the day while the Vaqueros tallied seven. 

Game Two vs. New Mexico Junior College
The Thunderbirds grabbed a quick lead against the Roughriders in the top of the second in game two on the strength of a couple of two-out hits. 

YC responded immediately in the bottom of the second with a couple of runs to take a 2-1 lead. Sophomore outfielder Blake Jacklin doubled with one out and later came around to score on a bunt single off the bat of freshman outfielder Nolan Sparks. Freshman catcher Avery Isola then gave the Roughriders the aforementioned lead later in the frame with an RBI sacrifice bunt. 

The offense sputtered from there for the Roughriders and the Thunderbirds were able to push across four more two-out runs (two in the fourth and two in the seventh) to walk away with the 5-2 victory. 

Up Next
The Roughriders are back in action tomorrow (February 4) at Red Mountain High School in Mesa, Arizona, where they will take on El Paso Community College with first pitch set for 2 p.m.