By Jesse Lubiniecki

TAFT, CA – Taft College Baseball played two games once against Mt. San Antonio College on February 7 and another on the 8th against Antelope Valley College.

During game one against Mt. San Antonio was a shock for the Cougars. Mt. San Antonio came out hot scoring 2 in the second, third, and fourth inning putting the Cougars in a difficult position. The offense was in a slump as they were not able to execute a single run, getting shut out. The Mounties out hit the Cougars 13-3 which led to the disappointing defeat 9–0.

Game two started out good as the Cougars managed to shut out the Antelope Valley Marauders the first two innings until 2 runs were scored in the 3rd. The Cougars answered back in the 5th when Jerameel Brisueno singled into right field, bringing home Odnal Rivera making the score 2-1. The Marauders responded quickly, bringing in a run from a sacrifice bunt to make it 3-1. The Marauders didn't stop, hitting a 3 run shot the next inning and adding 1 more on top of that. The Cougars tried to climb back in the 9th but fell short resulting in the final score 8-4. The Cougars managed to put up 9 hits on the board with Rhett Hodgins and Odnal Rivera collecting 2 each.

The Cougars look to regroup as they head out to Antelope Valley February 11 for their 10th game of the season. Taft is currently 3-6 in the opening season.