What started off as a nail-biting series by the Pierce College Brahmas versus the Grossmont College Griffins ended in a lopsided loss for the Brahmas in a win-or-go-home game three. Pierce Baseball fell to the Griffins in the first round of the California Community College Athletic Association (CCCAA) playoffs at Noel Mickelson Field in El Cajon, Calif., on May 3.
The three-game series started off hot with a tight 11-10 victory for the Griffins, putting them up 1-0 in the series. There were a total of four lead changes in the game, with the final one being the game-winning swing by Grossmont infielder Nico Newhan in the bottom of the ninth inning.
The swing by Newhan was the result of a comeback for the Griffins, as Grossmont was down 10-7 going into the bottom of the ninth.
Game one set the tone high for both teams, but it was not a surprise for Brahma head coach Bill Picketts. Picketts prepared for a back-and-forth series and told his team to be ready for a game three.
“I’ve been doing this for a long time, and I’ve been in this situation both ways,” Picketts said. “I’ve seen sweeps on those Saturdays. So whether we won or lost this game, I was going to approach it tomorrow the same exact way, plan on being here for two games.”
As the game progressed and tension was building, emotions started to rise high when Brahmas starting pitcher, Patrick Fernandez, got ejected for using foul language toward the umpire for a disagreeing call.
This ejection was a momentum booster for the Brahmas and gave them an even bigger reason to win, according to Brahma first base Orion Hahm-Taklender.
“If anything, it fired us up a little more,” Hahm-Taklender said. “ It just gave us a reason to want to win.”
Hahm-Taklender was a big contributor for the Brahmas, scoring a total of three runs, the most runs on the team, with one being a home run at the top of the eighth inning.
The ejection on Fernandez did fire up the Brahmas, as substitute pitcher Dylan Adams stepped up and delivered his strongest game of the season, having four strikeouts in three innings and having an earned run average (ERA) of 2.70.
For game two of the series, it started off with a blowout lead in favor for the Brahmas, leading to a 4-0 lead going into the sixth inning. Grossmont started to gain momentum in the top of the sixth, getting a run in, then leading to a game-changing six runs in the seventh inning. With the score then being 7-4 in favor of Grossmont, the Brahmas were in the hot seat to turn things around and prevent a sweep from the Griffins.
After another run for Grossmont and two more runs from the Brahmas in the eighth inning, the score was 8-6, with Grossmont still leading. The Brahmas put out a defensive showcase, grounding out two Griffins and striking out Grossmont infielder Noah Masnas due to the effort of Brahma pitcher Brayden Briscoe.
The Brahmas came back in the bottom of the ninth inning, scoring three runs, completing the comeback.
With game three underway, another close game was probably anticipated, but the game was a runaway win for the Griffins. Grossmont started with a 10-1 lead going into the seventh inning, scoring half of their runs in the fifth inning alone.
The Brahmas put up two runs in the seventh inning, but the game finished with a win for the Griffins, winning the first round and sending the Brahmas home.
This was the Brahmas first appearance in the playoffs since 2018, and after having a 7-32 record the year prior, outfielder Wyatt La Marsna was grateful to now be part of a winning program
“It was a really fun year,” La Marsna said. “Going from last year winning seven games and then winning, I believe 23 games this year, it was a lot more fun.”
