By Jordan Kimball
Runs have been hard to come by for the Stompers. Since opening CCL play on Tuesday with a 7-1 win over the San Luis Obispo Blues, Sonoma had scored just six runs in three games — all losses. Rock bottom came Friday in a 9-0 defeat to the San Francisco Seagulls, where a near no-hitter was broken by an Anthony Scheppler seventh-inning single.
As a result of the offensive struggles, Stompers manager Zack Pace shuffled the lineup for Saturday’s rematch. Colton Boardman jumped to the leadoff spot while Landon Akers’ power was displayed in the three-hole. Other adjustments followed, and the results showed.
The Stompers (5-5, 2-3 CCL) earned their second CCL win with a 14-3 blowout of San Francisco Saturday. Sonoma got ahead early, scoring eight runs in the first two innings and tallying 10 hits total. Its pitching shut down the Seagulls’ offense, striking out 14 batters, to cap a successful first game away from Arnold Field.
“Some days you have good days, some days you have bad,” Pace said postgame. “I thought we just did a good job of sticking to our approach.”
Friday’s matchup was bizarre, to say the least. Sonoma and San Francisco went back and forth for the first three innings before a six-run fourth inning for the Seagulls broke the deadlock. The Stompers couldn’t counter, and San Francisco never looked back. It felt like the Seagulls had the game the whole time, but Sonoma constantly found itself with opportunities, yet couldn’t get the “big hit” — or really any hit.
A similar story happened Saturday. Except this time, the roles were reversed. While early offense has been nearly non-existent for Sonoma, it couldn’t be more visible in Game 2. The Stompers had their largest inning of the season in the first, scoring six runs on four hits. They chased SF starter Maxwell McGrady off the mound after he recorded just two outs.
The momentum was irrepressible, but it wouldn’t stop there.
Sonoma’s second time around saw it add to its lead. Akers followed his first-inning walk with a second-inning single, advancing a base on an error by the left fielder. Nick Sebastiani then reached for the first time, forcing another mistake, this time by shortstop Jake Brewer. A wild pitch scored Akers before McCann Libby built off his first-inning double with a base hit. Trent Keys walked — one of his five in the game — eventually moving 90 feet on a wild pitch that scored Sebastiani.
Connor Pawlowski flew out to end the inning, but the harm was done.
As the Stompers entered the third inning with a comfortable 8-0 lead, starting pitcher Nick Santivanez held down the fort from the mound. He earned his first win of the year with a four-inning outing, striking out seven of the 15 batters he faced while allowing just two hits.
San Francisco had no answer for Santivanez’s stuff. His off-speed pitches had hitters off balance. His fastball blew into Pawlowski’s glove behind the dish. The CSUN freshman retired the Seagulls in order in the first inning before notching three strikeouts in the second frame.
“When he gets ahead with that fastball, good things happen. He has a really good arm, and he stayed ahead of hitters all night,” Pace said.
Santivanez allowed his first hit in the third — a single from Alan Ramirez — but a groundout to Boardman at shortstop ended the inning. Santivanez pitched a strong fourth, capping off the impressive performance that kept the Stompers in front.
Their once-eight-run lead quickly grew in the fifth. Akers — who made the All-Atlantic Sun Second Team at shortstop and led Bellarmine in slugging percentage (.511) — showcased his power with a two-run nuke, scoring Scheppler to give the Stomps their ninth and 10th runs.
No. 11 came an inning later when Pawlowski knocked home Keys, and 13, 14 and 15 all happened in the seventh inning thanks to five base runners, hit-by-pitches, balks and wild pitches.
The 14-2 game looked all but sealed — and it was. San Francisco tacked on one run in the ninth but lacked the firepower for what would’ve been a miraculous comeback. It fell 14-3, as Sonoma reclaimed momentum after Friday’s demolition.
The message is now clear: Sunday’s series finale is huge. It can send notice to the rest of the CCL not to get too comfortable after one big win. And Pace knows exactly what’s coming.
“Expect a dog fight tomorrow. Don't expect it to be easy. It's gonna be a dog fight. We're looking to win this series. But it’s gonna be a grind. And (we need to) be ready to go,” he said.
The Stompers will seek the series win Sunday afternoon with a 1:05 p.m. first pitch back in wine country at Arnold Field.