Saints struggle in the ninth, lose to the Barons

The Arroyo Seco Saints (2-4) lost a heartbreaker to the Academy Barons (3-3) at Jackie Robinson Field due to a chaotic ninth inning where the Barons scored six runs to take the lead.

The Saints led 10-6 in the ninth before pitching struggles gave the Barons a two-run lead heading to the bottom half of the inning. Arroyo Seco couldn't complete their second comeback of the game and fell 12-10 to the Barons.

Brayden Flores (Loyola Marymount University) had a great game for the Saints, including a two-out, two-run home run in the fifth that started a rally, leading to five runs in the inning.

He went 2-5 with three RBIs for the Saints, helping raise his OPS to over 1.062 through his first week with the Saints. 

Flores pointed to "all the work I put into the offseason" as a big reason for his successes early on in the summer.

The Saints' season series with the Barons is now knotted at 1-1, with four more games left in the season.

Although the Saints' pitching gave up 12 runs on the day, freshman Dylan Hoang (Villanova University) was a bright spot. Hoang threw three scoreless innings, inducing an inning-ending double play in the seventh to strand a runner at third.

Hoang is one of only two Freshmen on the team, and said his mentality is to "Attack guys and be aggressive. Keep the ball down." He executed his game plan to perfection against the Baron and looks to keep the momentum going as the summer continues.

Arroyo Seco hopes to bounce back tomorrow night as they face the Orange County Riptide at Jackie Robinson Field at 5:35 PM.

Contributors:

Saints reporter: Joshua Krueger (Baylor University)

Saints Photographer: Aaliyah Alamillo (University of La Verne)