By Jordan Kimball
Losses are part of the grind in sports, but for the Stomps, they’ve been rare. After falling in its first two games of the 2025 campaign, Sonoma had won four straight entering Wednesday’s matchup with the San Luis Obispo Blues. Coming off a 7-1 win Tuesday against the Blues, the Stomps were in the driver’s seat. But you can’t win them all, and that was shown in Sonoma’s (5-3, 1-1 CCL) 4-3 loss to SLO Wednesday.
“Every day, whether we win or lose, we gotta be ready to go and try to improve tomorrow,” Stomps manager Zack Pace said postgame. “It’s just about being ready to work again and trying to bring it to get a victory.”
While Sonoma fell to the Blues Wednesday, it started things off nearly mirroring its 7-1 win the day prior. The Blues had a runner on early in the first inning Tuesday, and the same happened Wednesday. But both times, the Stomps’ pitching shut them down. A deep fly ball was caught by Sonoma right fielder Brady Shannon before SLO’s Eli Henderson walked on seven pitches. But Stomps’ starter Devon Laguinto — in his second start of the 2025 campaign — settled in. He sat down Donovan Jordan and Mason Ashlock to end the inning.
When Sonoma had its first chance, it capitalized. On Blues starter Scott Bauman’s opening pitch, Landon Akers was nailed in the shoulder. He advanced to second on a Heeryun Han sacrifice bunt before a double-steal brought him to third and Nick Sebastiani to second after a four-pitch walk.
A wild pitch soon advanced them, giving the Stomps the early lead. Following the run, Bauman exited the game with an injury, and former Stomp Hawk Hill replaced him. Hill retired Charlie Malton to end the first, but Sonoma was in front.
“It’s good seeing some guys get a little bit more comfortable and swing the bat a little bit better,” Pace said. “That’s definitely a good thing to see, and hopefully, we keep improving.”
The lead didn’t last long, though. Zach Tallerman led off the second inning with a double and was driven home on a 6-3 groundout. But similar to the first, Laguinto got comfortable. He put away Sonoma State catcher Brodie Miller and Gavin Constantine, giving the Stomps another chance to get in front.
Colton Boardman started a rally. He singled on Hill’s second pitch, advancing to third base on an Esteban Sepulveda single. Boardman then scored on a Paul Lizzul base hit, reclaiming the lead for Sonoma.
But in a seesaw affair, the lead again disappeared. Laguinto’s intended pitch count was 40, and the Blues’ lineup brought him there quickly in the third. SLO leadoff man Ethan Royal and two-hole Henderson both singled. A bunt from Jordan advanced them each 90 feet before Ashlock ripped a single into left field to drive them both home.
And unlike the other innings when the Stomps and Blues matched each other, Sonoma had no answer. Sebastiani, McCann Libby and Malton were erased in order in the bottom half as Nikolas Haas took the mound in the fourth.
To start, Haas was nearly flawless. In his three innings of work, he allowed just two hits and struck out three. However, in the top of the sixth, with the Blues still ahead 3-2, Tallerman notched his second extra-base hit with a home run to deep left field. The lead was SLO’s largest of the two-game series, but the momentum continued to swing.
Libby led off the bottom of the sixth with a deep homer, cutting the Stomps’ deficit to one. Boardman singled after a Malton flyout to the warning track, but Shannon grounded into a double play to end the threat.
From there, both teams’ offenses were relatively silent. Chris Albee replaced Haas on the rubber, retiring the Blues with ease to bring Sepulveda to the dish. Though a hard lineout snared by SLO’s second baseman foreshadowed the rest of the Stomps’ inning.
Lizzul singled, but a firm Akers lineout erased it after pinch runner Kieran Baker was doubled up at first base — the Blues’ third double play in as many innings.
With SLO down quickly, Sonoma was back at the plate. Yet, the same story remained. Han failed to reach base for the third time after he and Sebastiani flew out, before Libby ended things with a strikeout.
With only one inning remaining, the momentum was low for the Stomps, but their pitching staff continued to impress. Albee allowed a leadoff single, but two lineouts and an 8-5 putout brought Sonoma to the dish for one last time.
However, nothing materialized. Malton, Boardman and Shannon were put away, ending Sonoma’s four-game win streak.
“We’re still a good team, and we’re gonna be right where we wanna be at the end of the year,” Pace said. “It’s baseball. You’re not gonna win them all. We’re going to get out there tomorrow and hopefully get a victory.”
The Stomps will look to get back on track when they return to Arnold Field on Thursday for a 6:05 p.m. battle with the Alameda Merchants.