Anthony Branch pitched out of a no-out, bases-loaded jam in the top of the eighth inning and Joe Prince singled home Duncan Proctor for the winning run in the bottom of the inning, lifting San Marcos to a 5-4 win over Santa Paula in a Southern California Invitational baseball game at Joe Mueller Field.
Proctor drew a one-walk and went to third on a double by Isaac Rodriguez. That set the stage for Prince’s game-winning single to center field.
Branch got the win to improve to 3-0. He got the first batter out on an infield fly. Santa Paula tried a squeeze bunt but failed to execute and the Royals nailed the runner at third base for the second out. Branch struck out the next batter to end the inning.
San Marcos led 2-0 after two innings Travis Caesar singled in a run in the first inning and Jimmy Brakka knocked in a run on a ground ball in the second.
Santa Paula got to Brakka in the fourth and scored three runs to take a 3-2 lead. Prince relieved Brakka in the fifth.
San Marcos reclaimed the lead, 4-3, with two runs in the fifth. Brakka and Sean Mcduffie reached safely on errors and scored on singles by Caesar and Paxton Ridgway.
Santa Paula tied the score in the sixth. Prince struck out the leadoff batter who reached first on the wild pitch after Mcduffie was struck by the bat. The runner scored on a ground ball single to right which went past the first baseman.
