By ALEC NOLAN
The Foresters moved to a perfect 7-0 on the season with a 3-1 win over the Neptune Beach Pearl in a Califonia Collegiate League game Wednesday night at Caesar Uyesaka Stadium.
University of Nebraska’s Garrett King made his 2015 starting debut for the Foresters and earned the victory. The right-hander threw 7 scoreless innings, giving up just 4 hits and striking out 3. Neptune Beach righty Justin Finan suffered the loss, allowing 3 runs and 9 hits over 4 innings of work.
Ryan Chandler, the Conference USA Freshman of the Year, got things started for the Forester offense with a double down the third-base line in the bottom of the first. Chandler moved to third on a wild pitch and scored on a fielder’s choice by Granger Studdard. It was Studdard’s team-leading 7th RBI of the season.
Santa Barbara scored again in the bottom of the third, with an RBI double off the bat of Kaleb Denny. Jeremy Montalbano scored to make it 2-0.
In the bottom of the fourth, Chandler once again kick-started the offense with a hard line-drive past the right side of the infield. He then stole second base and scored on Tyler Neslony’s opposite-field hit to left for his first RBI for the year.
Chandler went 4-5 in the lead-off spot, with 2 runs, and 2 steals.
Neptune Beach scored in the eighth off reliever Tyler Cohen. The Pearl’s third baseman Chris Smutny, of Columbia University, led off with a single and moved to second when Studdard failed to cleanly field the line drive. Smutny scored later in the inning when Mike Miller struck out on a ball in the dirt that got past catcher Jeremy Montalbano.
Cohen eventually got his first save of the season, shutting down the Pearl in the ninth. He allowed 1 hit and struck out 5 in two innings of work.
The Foresters will look to stay undefeated Thursday in a doubleheader against the Pearl. The first game is at 1 p.m. The nightcap is scheduled at 5.
