Vigilantes Cannot Break the Drought on Offense

MISSION VIEJO — In a season that has had its share of bumpy roads, the Vigilantes find themselves stumbling again.

The Vigilantes dropped their third in a row Friday, 6-0, to Tri-City in front of an announced crowd of 2,190 at Saddleback College.

Friday’s loss--which dropped Mission Viejo to 8-9, the same record as Tri-City--also was the second straight shutout against the Vigilantes, and the seventh of the season. With their last run coming in the sixth inning on Wednesday, the Vigilantes have now gone scoreless in 21 innings. “We’ve got to get the bats going again,” Vigilante Manager Buck Rogers said. “We were swinging good when we came off the road, but the last couple of nights we haven’t done anything.” The Vigilantes’ John Homan (1-1), the first of three Mission Viejo pitchers on the night, gave up six runs (five earned) and nine hits in 5 2/3 innings to take the loss.

“I don’t think our guys have pitched that badly the past couple of nights,” Rodgers said. “But you can’t do anything if you don’t score. But it’s not panic time yet. We’re going to be OK. If anything we’re trying too hard.”

Posse pitcher Ruben Niebla (6-5) helped Tri-City snap out of five-game skid by holding the Vigilantes to four hits in 7 2/3 innings. He walked four and struck out seven, five of them looking.

He was backed by a 12-hit Posse attack that broke open a 2-0 game in the sixth with four runs to chase Homan.

“I felt like Picasso today,” said Niebla, who is an assistant baseball coach at Azusa Pacific College. “I just kept painting the corners, hitting my spots. And it was effective.”

Reliever Bret Grebe had to survive two bases-loaded situations--in the eighth when he first replaced Niebla, and again in the ninth--but kept Mission Viejo off the scoreboard. The Vigilantes finished with seven hits, and stranded 10 runners.

After being shut out Thursday by Grays Harbor, the Vigilantes wanted to get off to a fast start. But it was Tri-City who scored first.

Ryan Seidel led off with a double in the second, and with one out Graham Koonce singled him home.

Homan had to take some of the blame for the Posse’s second run in the fifth. After Jason Vicens singled and was bunted to second, Homan tried to pick him off but instead threw the ball into center field for the game’s lone error.

Vicens motored to third, where he scored on a sacrifice fly to center by Jason Minici.

Notes

Right-hander Mark Draeger, whose season ended because of an abdominal injury, is headed back to school at Slippery Rock (Pa.). He said he needed between 5-6 units to complete his degree in sports management. “I’d like to come back here next year, if they invite me,” Draeger said.