Green and Felix Lead Help Aztecs Baseball Earn Split vs. Chandler-Gilbert CC as Season Ends
The Pima Community College baseball team's (30-26, 17-23 in ACCAC) season came to a close on Saturday at the West Campus as the Aztecs played in its 15th ACCAC doubleheader split of the season.
The Aztecs led by one game for the No. 4 seed coming into their final doubleheader but Glendale Community College swept Paradise Valley Community College in Phoenix and clinched the final spot with the tie-breaker. The Aztecs dropped six of their final eight games of the season.
Freshman Anthony Felix (Canyon del Oro HS) and sophomore Hunter Green (Sahuaro HS) led the offense on Saturday. Felix finished the day 6 for 7 with an RBI and four runs scored while Green went 6 for 8 with five RBIs and three runs scored.
Game 1: Chandler-Gilbert CC Coyotes 7, Pima CC Aztecs 3
The Aztecs struggled to put together consistent offense in the first game as the Coyotes scored three runs in the first and third innings.
The Aztecs got on the board in the sixth when Green hit an RBI double to score Felix, who led off the inning with a single. Freshman Manny Ramirez (Bisbee HS) followed with an RBI double of his own to drive in Green. The Aztecs trailed 7-2 at that point. Felix hit an RBI single in the seventh inning to score pinch runner Adrian Lucero.
Felix finished 4 for 4 with an RBI and a run scored. Green went 2 for 3 with an RBI and a run scored while Ramirez was 1 for 2 with an RBI.
Freshman Andres Hackman (Empire HS) started the game but couldn't make it out of the third inning as he pitched two and two-third innings giving up six runs (six earned) on nine hits with two strikeouts and one walk.
Game 2: Pima CC Aztecs 13, Chandler-Gilbert CC Coyotes 5
The Aztecs trailed early but the offense came alive in the later innings. After being shut out for the first five innings, the Aztecs scored four runs in the sixth inning, three in the seventh and six in the eighth to help seal the win.
Down 3-0 in the sixth, Green stepped up once again as he hit a two-run RBI double to put the Aztecs on the board. He later scored from third base on a passed ball to put Pima ahead 4-3.
The Coyotes tied it with a run in the top of the seventh but Pima responded in the bottom half of the inning. Sophomore Francisco Rodriguez (Tucson Magnet HS) and Green hit back-to-back RBI singles. Two batters later, sophomore David Oropeza (Nogales HS) hit an RBI single to make it 7-4.
In the big eighth inning, Oropeza and freshman Myles Moran hit back-to-back two run RBI doubles while Green contributed with an RBI double. Freshman Oscar Larranaga (Sunnyside HS) capped off the six-run inning with an RBI single.
Green finished the game 4 for 5 with four RBIs and two runs scored. Moran was 3 for 4 with two RBIs and a run scored while Oropeza went 2 for 2 with three RBIs and a run scored. Felix was 2 for 3 with three runs scored and Rodriguez finished 2 for 3 with an RBI and three runs scored.
Freshman Kristian Samorano (Tucson Magnet HS) picked up the win (3-2) after he pitched the final three innings in relief giving up two runs (one earned) on five hits with three strikeouts. Freshman Ernesto Romero (Salpointe Catholic HS) started the game and went six innings giving up three runs (three earned) on eight hits with three strikeouts.
Hunter Green/Photo by Ben Carbajal
