Falcons Open With 4-8 Start in Arizona

Tucson, AZ -- Indian Hills Community College baseball coach Cam Walker isn't big on making excuses. But there is no denying the fact that his team was at a serious disadvantage on their annual season-opening trip to Arizona. The Falcons did not have a single practice outside before departing on their southern trip. And that may have played a part in the 4-8 record the Falcons recorded.

Indian Hills got shutout pitching performances from a pair of freshmen for two of their four wins. Two sophomore pitchers, Kevin Vazquez and Kevin Day, combined to allow just one run in a nine-inning win against Mesa CC.

The last three games were played against teams that had all played at least 25 games already and had begun their 2011 schedules at the end of January.

Still, the Falcons were competitive. The first two games were predictably rough with Indian Hills commiting eight errors and giving up 24 runs. However things improved after that with the pitching and defense both getting better over the final 10 games of the trip.

Indian Hills started with two losses to Madison Area Tech by scores of 15-7 and 9-3. Two pitchers, Kevin Vazquez and Matt Cook, who are being counted on to be keys in this year's starting rotation, struggled in their initial outings of the season. They gave up nine hits and nine runs in a combined 4 1/3 innings.

At the plate, Roberto Perez, Colin Bates and Kelvin Brito each had two hits in the opener and Adam Coleman drove in two runs. The Falcons were held to only two hits in the nightcap, one of them a triple by Mitch Osnowitz.

The first win of the season came in the second game the following day when the Falcons routed the University of Arizona Club team, 10-2. Gabriel Rivera, Miguel Sanchez and Edwin Rodriguez had two-hit games and Rivera and Rodriguez had two RBIs. Coleton Wilson threw four innings and got the win in relief of starter Jamil Caballero. Wilson pitched one-hit shutout baseball and the Falcons put the game away with a five-run 6th inning.

The U of A Club team had won the first game 10-6.

Pima CC beat the Falcons, 8-2, the next day. Adam Peters started and pitched well for IHCC, permitting only two hits and an unearned run through the first four innings. But the bullpen allowed seven runs after Peters departed. The Indian Hills offense managed only four singles.

Freshman Jordan Piche was nearly perfect against the University of Northern Colorado JV, facing one batter over the minimum in a five-inning one-hit shutout with eight strikeouts. The Falcons pounded out ten hits including the first IHCC homer by Kelvin Brito. Rodriguez had two hits and three runs scored.

A 5-1 win over Mesa featured six strong innings by Vazquez and three more in relief by Kevin Day. The only run allowed was unearned. Osnowitz homered and Rivera had three hits. Brito and Guillermo Cruz each had a pair of hits.

The Falcons played their first of five games in the Jack Howell Classic against Hill College from Texas and lost 3-2. IHCC scored a run in the bottom of the 7th to get to within one run, but had the potential tying run tagged out at the plate to end the game.

Freshman Tyler Sparger had his best outing of the trip, permitting just two earned runs over the first five innings. Francisco Perez had two hits and Coleman and Brito drove in the runs.

David Kroger, Jr., another freshman pitcher, threw a three-hit shutout in a 7-0 blanking of the Langley Blaze. Kroger fanned seven and walked only one in notching his first collegiate win. Bates had two doubles and Sanchez also picked up two hits for the Falcons.

A game against Central Arizona later that same day began the stretch of contests against experienced teams to conclude the trip for IHCC. The Falcons lost to Central Arizona 6-3. Coleman and Cruz had a couple of hits each and both drove in a run.

Odessa (TX) CC tallied six times in the first inning and handed IHCC a 9-3 loss. Only five hits in this one for the Falcons, by five different players.

The trip concluded with a 5-0 loss to a very good Cochise CC team. Four of the runs by Cochise came in the 4th inning. Osnowitz and Wilson had the only hits for Indian Hills.

The Falcons came away from the first dozen games of the season with some valuable experience that they will be able to use to their advantage when they open the home schedule against Iowa Central on March 23.