Austin Rubick struck out 10 batters and Ryan Coker smashed a two-run homer to lead Buena’s baseball team to a critical 4-3 Channel League victory over Santa Barbara High on a windy Tuesday.
The Dons staked the Bulldogs to an early 3-0 lead as Buena scored one in the first and two in the second on Coker’s drive. Buena scored the would-be winning run in the bottom of the fourth. Spencer Yates doubled and was brought home on another double by Jacob Valdez.
Santa Barbara scored one in the top of the fourth and two in the sixth. The Dons put the tying run into scoring position but couldn’t produce one more.
The result hurts the Dons’ chances at a league title. Buena moves into sole possession of first place with an 8-2 record. Dos Pueblos is in second at 7-2 and Santa Barbara is still in third at 5-4.
Rubick improved to 7-2 on the season while Dons starter Kevin Gowdy dropped to 5-2. Gowdy struck out six.
The same two teams go at it again on Friday in Santa Barbara at 3:15 p.m.
