Curiel Homers Twice, Hancock Baseball Grounds Condors 6-3 to Stay Undefeated at Home

Daniel Curiel clubbed two home runs, and Ismael Hernandez delivered the go-ahead single and earned the win on the mound during the Allan Hancock College baseball team's 6-3 victory over Oxnard Friday afternoon in a Western State Conference game. Hancock moved to 10-0 at home this season, 2-1 in conference and 11-9 overall. The Condors fell to 1-2 in conference and 6-13 overall.

Hancock scored the first run of the game in the third when Tanner Thompson singled with two outs and eventually scored on a wild pitch. Oxnard tied it in the fourth with a run off starting pitcher Dylan Maiden.

The Bulldogs climbed again in the fourth when Curiel went deep, the solo-shot gave Hancock a 2-1 lead. The Condors rallied for two runs in the fifth against Maiden to take a 3-2 lead.

Hancock evened the score at 3-3 in the fifth when Chad Jones singled home Thompson, who was hit by a pitch to start the inning. The game remained tied 3-3 until Hancock strung together a rally in the bottom of the eighth inning. With two outs and nobody on base, Josh Harmonay doubled in his first at-bat of the season. The sophomore missed the first six weeks of the season with an injury. Ismael Hernandez followed with a single to drive in Harmonay to give Hancock a 4-3 lead. Curiel stepped up and crushed a pitch over the wall for a two-run home run, his second of the game, to cap the three-run inning.

Maiden earned a no-decision despite throwing five solid innings. The sophomore scattered five hits, three runs, one of them earned, and struck out two. Phil Almanza threw 1 2/3 innings of shutout relief for the Bulldogs. He allowed two hits and walked one. Hernandez earned the win after throwing 2 1/3 innings of shutout ball. The freshman allowed one hit and struck out five.

Hancock finished with 10 hits as Jones and Hernandez each had two hits and one RBI. Curiel had two hits, both home runs, and 3 RBI.

The Bulldogs visit Oxnard next Tuesday, March 13 at 2:30 p.m.