By Jordan Kimball, Beat Writer
A doubleheader sweep in which the Stompers outscored the Menlo Park Legends 15-4 gave Sonoma a boost of confidence heading into its furthest road trip of the season. Spirits were high on the bus down to San Luis Obispo Tuesday morning, not just because of recent success, but because the Stompers were set to face the Blues, a team they outscored 10-5 in an early June series.
When the ride ended, the team was locked in and ready. The contest at Sinsheimer Stadium even began slightly early. But 12 innings later, the palpable energy from four hours before had vanished.
Lifted by a three-run ninth inning and an extra-inning walk-off, the Blues took Game 1 of a two-game set against the Stompers (10-8, 7-6 CCL) 7-6 Tuesday. Sonoma jumped out to an early 3-0 lead, but SLO battled back with timely hits and pressure on the basepaths.
“Unfortunately, we couldn't get enough runs and pull it out,” Stompers manager Zack Pace said postgame. “You win some, you lose some. We lost today, and hopefully we go get them tomorrow.”
When Pace talked about the inability to pull it out, he was referring to runners left on base, an issue that’s killed opportunities in Sonoma’s previous games. It deflated the Stompers once again on Tuesday. They left 14 runners on, including three in extra innings.
In the 10th, Nic Sebastiani started on base with the CCL’s ghost runner rule. He made it to third but was thrown out at the plate a few plays later, ending a chance to take the lead.
An inning later, the Stompers scored a run, but Max Handron, whose clutch double plated Colton Boardman, was stranded in scoring position when Kieran Baker struck out.
Finally, in the 12th, Brady Shannon reached third on a sacrifice by Anthony Scheppler. However, Sebastiani and Paul Lizzul were retired on strikes to silence the threat.
“We're just gonna keep on grinding, try to do our thing, get our swings off with runners in scoring position,” Pace said. “We keep on giving ourselves chances to succeed, and we're gonna come through.”
The question for the Stompers is no longer how. Handron, Connor Pawlowski, Esteban Sepulveda and Heeryun Han are just a few of the players who’ve displayed a clutch factor. The question’s shifted to when. Each loss for Sonoma follows the same script. Score early. Falter late.
That’s precisely what happened against the Blues. To open Tuesday’s contest, the Stompers punished Riley Marcotte, taking a quick 2-0 lead. Lifted by a hard hit ball by Landon Akers that scored Boardman and a hit-by-pitch on Scheppler with the bases loaded, Sonoma had firm control.
Charlie Malton — making his first start in CCL play — held it down on the mound, as the Stompers extended their lead in the third. Shannon — just days after crushing a ball 385 feet at Arnold Field — scored McCann Libby on his second triple of the season.
While the floodgates should’ve opened, they instead shut.
In the bottom of the fifth, the Blues put together a two-spot. Malton was replaced by newcomer Lucas Alaniz — making his first appearance of the summer — and he allowed two runs in one inning of work. A double and a single plated Ethan Royal and Mason Ashlock, to cut the Blues’ deficit to one.
In the seventh, the Stompers pulled their special, advancing on a passed ball. Akers returned their lead with a two-run base hit to score Boardman and Handron — who notched three hits, two runs and one RBI, showcasing his aggressive plate presence in one of his first games of the summer.
“He's a great ball player, and he’s come up clutch when we needed him,” Pace said. “He can swing the bat really well, so I look forward to seeing more out of him.”
Holding a 5-2 lead in the ninth inning, the victory looked all but sealed for Sonoma. The Blues, however, had another idea. Despite tallying just one hit, they punished Kyle Seo and Nikolas Haas with two walks and two hit-by-pitches. On top of that, SLO advanced seven bags in the frame, split between stolen bases and wild pitches.
“We gotta start calling picks if that's needed,” Pace said. “We need to get those guys dirty and get them thinking about the picks, and we're just not doing it enough.”
The shocking rally swapped the momentum to SLO’s side. And despite being retired in the 10th inning, the Blues responded to the Stompers’ run with one of their own in the 11th. Then, in the 12th, Royal delivered a walk-off winner to end the night.
The Stompers will aim to overcome their heartbreaking defeat Tuesday with a 6:05 p.m. rematch against the Blues back at Sinsheimer Stadium on Wednesday.