By GERARDO RECINOS
Martinez Tribune
After an extra innings defeat at the hands of Pinole Valley on Monday afternoon, the Bulldogs are on the verge of their biggest losing streak since the team lost five in a row, and seven of eight in 2011.
Starting with a loss on April 19 to Campolindo and ending with their most recent defeat on May 9.
The Bulldogs have lost five of their last eight games, which includes two in extra innings, three by one run, and a shut out and two one-run losses.
“Not hitting, that’s all I tell them,” said coach Daryl King pointedly after the game. “There is no pride, guys are just out there mailing it in.”
King’s sharp criticisms had some basis. The Bulldogs could only muster four hits on the afternoon, while Pinole Valley scattered 10 in the nine inning win.
The offense has been a problem for the Bulldogs all season.
They have the lowest runs scored for any team above .500 in Division III, but up until this skid the pitching has been able to hold up despite the offensive struggles.
Their only run scored on Monday came off the bat of their offensive leader, Tyler Peters.
The senior San Francisco State-commit laced a double off the wall in left field, only missing a home run by a few feet.
However he didn’t have another chance to hit with a runner on for the rest of the ball game. His only other hit, a single in the top of the third came, with two outs.
The Bulldogs went down in order five times against the Spartans’ duo of junior Daniel Sanchez, the starter who went eight innings, and reliever Joel Quiros who got around a walk to Jordyn Eglite in the ninth inning to set up his team for the winner.
The Bulldog pitching staff also gave their team every chance to win with their performance.
Starter Brett Sterrer was far from brilliant on Monday, but in his 4 2/3 he put up a gutsy performance and only allowed one run, while stranding eight Spartans on base.
He was relieved by freshman junior varsity call up Andrew Lawrence who put up 3 1/3 innings of solid pitching from the bullpen.
He stranded six on base, but settled down in the bottom of the eighth inning and struck out the side with the 3-4-5 hitters coming up for the Bulldogs.
“[Lawrence] he looks like a freshman who belongs with anyone else on the team,” King said.
However none of the Alhambra men at the plate could solve the puzzle against the fresh Quiros, and could not get Lawrence the win.
That meant that when another JV call up, Ryan Craig entered the game, he would be forced to unfairly bear the brunt of the nine-inning battle.
“The other guy just put a good swing on it, you know, he did what he was supposed to do, he challenged him,” King said.
Craig got two outs in the inning but in a 2-0 situation, with a man on, he challenged senior Jayley Stewart, and the lefty made him pay. The double into the gap sent the Spartans home, and put a dent into the playoff hopes of the Bulldogs, who know hold a 5-6 record against Division III opponents.
“They got to unify as a team,” King said after the game in hopes of turning the tide this season. “They got to be able to wipe the slate clean and know the next one is the one that gets them going.”
“They did whatever it took to get the win early, and they’re not doing that now.”
