The Santa Barbara baseball team squandered a 4-0 lead on Tuesday, dropping a Channel League matchup at Ventura 5-4 in the eighth inning on a walk-off double.
Catcher Spencer Fraker led the Dons at the plate with three hits and knocked in three of Santa Barbara’s four runs. Jack Crummer added two hits and an RBI as the pair accounted for most of the Dons’ offense.
Danny Zandona started for the Dons, striking out seven in seven innings. Two of the four runs he allowed were unearned. Robert Crawford came on in the eighth and recorded two outs before giving up an opposite-field fly ball that dropped in and scored the game-winning run.
After a 10-day break from league play, the Dons fall to 2-3 in the Channel League and 8-8 overall. Ventura is just 6-14 overall but ahead of the Dons in the league standings at 3-3, making Friday’s return game at Eddie Mathews Field extra important.
“When you play these teams twice in a week, you get to see all their strengths and weaknesses,” noted assistant coach Mike Cooney, saying that although not quite a must-win game yet, the Dons should consider it so because they can’t afford to drop too far behind in the standings.
VENTURA 5, SANTA BARBARA 4, 8 INNINGS
Santa Barbara 301 000 00 – 4 7 2
Ventura 000 310 0 1- 5 8 0
SB – Zandona, Crawford (8), and Fraker. V – Griffith, and Castro. LP- Crawford 1-1. 2B – SB 2 (Crummer, Fraker), V 2 (Doherty, Tucker) HR- Doherty (None on, 4th inning). Records – 8-8, 2-3, V 6-14, 3-3.
