RIVERSIDE, CA- The No. 11 Chargers faced elimination for the third time this postseason as they traveled to No. 3 Riverside City College for a rubber match to advance to the CCCAA Sectionals. The Chargers were unable to recover from their 4-run first inning deficit as the Tigers advanced to the next round with a 10-5 victory.
Riverside got started early with four runs in the first inning including a Daniel Garcia home run. Cypress was held scoreless through the first three innings as the Tigers got out to a 5-0 lead. Noah Karliner got the Cypress on the board in the top of the fourth inning with a 2 RBI double to right field. Karliner was the hottest bat in the Chargers lineup going 3-for-4 and 3 RBI. Nick Mascaro (1-for-4) added another run for the Chargers in the fourth inning to cut the Riverside lead to 2 runs.
The Tigers would extend their two-run lead by one run in both the fourth and fifth innings as the Chargers had their backs against the wall. Both teams bats would go silent during the sixth and seventh innings before the Chargers made a run in the top of the eight inning. Noah Karliner and Nick Mascaro once again drove in two runs (Brenden Harris and Dean Toigo) to bring the Chargers within two runs. The Cypress bullpen entered game three very thin and were unable to keep the offense within striking distance in the eighth inning. RCC tallied 3 runs on 3 hits as they would coast to a 10-5 victory.
The Chargers fantastic season comes to a close after 46 games and posting a 24-22 record. Cypress finished fourth place in the Orange Empire Conference while leading the entire state of California in home runs (57).
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