Red-Hot Bulldogs Continue Home Stand Tuesday Against Bakersfield

Riding a three-game winning streak, the Allan Hancock College baseball team continues the second half of its six-game home stand this week. The No.15 Bulldogs (5-1) host No.13 Bakersfield (2-5) on Tuesday at 2 p.m, at John Osborne Field. They'll host Canada (3-0) on Friday, Feb.14, at 2 p.m., and Porterville (1-3-1) on Saturday, Feb.15 at 1p.m.

Backed by solid pitching that yielded just two runs in 27 innings, the Bulldogs won all three home games last week. They blanked West Hills Coalinga 8-0 behind a nine strikeout effort from Nathan Thompson (2-0). Matt Shackley made his Bulldog debut with three shutout innings and four strikeouts to earn the save. Sophomore outfielder Kyle Smith drove in four runs, including three on a bases loaded triple.

Hancock beat Imperial Valley 9-1 on Friday behind Ryan Bower (2-0). The Lompoc High School graduate struck out five and allowed one run in six innings. Zach Nyman and Jacob Witkowski had three hits apiece to lead Hancock's offense.

The Bulldogs closed out the week with a 6-1 win over Imperial Valley. Marc Baker (1-0), a Nipomo High School product, allowed one run in six innings. Witkowski legged out a triple to make him the program's all-time leader with eight career triples. 

The Bulldogs defeated the Renegades 10-2 in Bakersfield back on Jan.31. Ryan Bower struck out ten in seven shutout innings to earn the victory. Ryan Welker paced the Hancock offense with four hits and 3 RBI. The sophomore catcher also scored four runs. He was one of seven Bulldogs with at least one RBI.

Bakersfield snapped a five-game losing skid over the weekend with a 7-4 win over Hartnell. Sophomore Rolando Martinez leads the Renegades with a .346 batting average. Freshman outfielder Zach Tanner is hitting .321 with a team-leading 5 RBI.

Canada is set to play at San Francisco on Tuesday, Feb.11, before making the trek to Hancock. Maurice Fuller leads the Colts with a .636 batting average, while Chris Miguel has 6 RBI in three games.

Porterville is the only team to beat Hancock this season. The Pirates edged the Bulldogs 6-4 in Bakersfield earlier this month. Zachiary Johnson leads the Pirates with a .526 batting average, 4 doubles and 9 RBI. He went 2 for 3 with 4 RBI, while Ryan Wood struck out 10 over 6 innings in Porterville's win over Hancock.