Late rally lifts Rocklin over Del Oro for first SFL win

Rocklin High School picked up its first Sierra Foothill League baseball win of the season Tuesday afternoon, as a three-run sixth inning elevated the Thunder to a 4-1 victory over rival Del Oro in Loomis. Rocklin followed Tuesday's win with a 6-2 victory over the Golden Eagles at home Wednesday, securing the series win and keeping the window open for a sweep Friday. The wins were crucial for the Thunder (7-11, 2-3 SFL), especially after being swept by Oak Ridge to fall into an 0-3 hole to begin league play. "Our goal is to win two out of three every series. That way, we can win every series, and obviously, that didn't happen against Oak Ridge," Rocklin coach Matt Jones said. "So for us to come out and put ourselves in position to do that (Wednesday) is huge." Rocklin pitcher Jesse Cuthill earned the win, tossing a complete game and striking out 12 while surrendering one run, one hit and two walks. The Golden Eagles (8-7, 1-4 SFL) jumped on Cuthill to start the game, scoring their lone run in the first inning and forcing the big lefty to throw 27 pitches in the frame. Cuthill gathered himself, however, and finished the game with an even 100 pitches. "I just knew I had to come back in the second inning and just throw strikes and just let my defense work around me. I have trust in my defense," Cuthill said. "I was mixing it up but mostly my fastball was working for me. I was throwing it by them and they couldn't really hit it." "He's a pretty experienced guy. I think he just knew he wasn't quite commanding the fastball that first inning and so he was being a little too picky with it," Jones said of Cuthill. "Del Oro got him deep into some counts and he kind of just switched his pitches and mind set there to attack the hitters early in the count rather than try and pitch around them." "He's good when he mixes all those pitches and throws them for strikes. We've been struggling with that," Del Oro coach J.R. Ziegelman said of Cuthill. "But you know, our approaches weren't great. We weren't having great team at-bats. We had a great team inning in the first and then we just never put anything together past that." Del Oro starter Sam Brown had a strong outing himself, shutting down Rocklin's bats for the most part, but struggled in the later innings. Brown allowed four runs, two earned, and five hits in six innings. "Sam's been solid all year. He really gets in the strike zone and that's what I love about him. He competes every single time," Ziegelman said. "We just didn't help him at all defensively or at the plate. We didn't do anything to help a great performance by him." Rocklin tied the score in the fifth on a solo home run by pinch hitter Tucker Baird. The Thunder pulled in front with a three-run sixth, two of which scored on Del Oro errors. Grant Munoz drove in the go-ahead run in the sixth with his second double of the game. The rivals are slated to square off again, with game three Friday at Del Oro. "That's what I love about baseball. We always have a game tomorrow you know. As upset as we are right now, we know we get a chance to come back and get after it tomorrow," Ziegelman said. "In the SFL, you try to win the series; you don't necessarily have to get sweeps. You just want to win the game in front of you and we have an opportunity tomorrow." Asked what needs to happen in Wednesday's game to secure a crucial series win, Jones said, "Same thing as today. Play catch, throw strikes, and have good at-bats."