No. 23 Citrus College Baseball Cruises Past Bakersfield, 13-1

No. 23 ranked Citrus College Baseball opened a three-game conference series at Bakersfield College with a 13-1 win on Tuesday, March 10. The victory moves the Owls to 13-7 overall and 2-2 in conference, while the Renegades fall to 10-11 overall and 2-2 in conference.

Citrus struck early in the opening inning when Cam Casado doubled to left field, driving in Cole West and Julian Hines to give the Owls a 2-0 lead.

The Owls broke the game open in the fourth inning, scoring six runs to extend their advantage to 8-0. Hines and Derek Almeda each drew RBI walks before Dustin Yela scored on a passed ball. Casado delivered again with a two-run double, and Matt Kaneshiro capped the rally with an RBI double to right field.

Citrus added another run in the fifth when West singled home Yela to make it 9-0. Bakersfield scored its lone run in the bottom of the inning, cutting the deficit to 9-1.

The Owls continued to pad their lead in the sixth as Casado launched a solo home run, his second of the season, followed by Azael Hernandez's solo shot, his first of the season, giving Citrus an 11-1 advantage.

Citrus added two more runs late in the game. Lance Armijo drove in a run with an RBI single in the seventh, and Almeda added an RBI single in the eighth to bring the final score to 13-1.

Citrus totaled 14 hits and drew 16 walks in the win. Casado led the offense with a 4-for-4 performance, including two doubles, a home run, and five RBIs, a Citrus career-best. Hines finished with two hits, two runs scored, and an RBI, while Almeda drove in two runs and reached base four times. Yela added two hits and two runs, and Hernandez contributed a solo home run.

On the mound, Tim Hudson (W, 4-1) earned the win, allowing one run on four hits over five innings with seven strikeouts. Citrus' bullpen shut the door the rest of the way, as Beau Lloyd (2 IP), Christian Eaton (1 IP), and Marcus Reese (1 IP) combined to allow just one hit while striking out six.

Citrus pitchers held Bakersfield to five hits while striking out 13, securing a convincing conference road victory.

The Owls will host Bakersfield for game two on Thursday, March 12, at 2 p.m.