CCBC Essex Outslugs Prince George’s in High-Scoring Region Opener!

LARGO, MD – The bats were scorching on a cold, sunny Saturday as CCBC Essex stormed past Prince George's Community College in a 19-13 slugfest to take Game 1 of their Region 20 opener. The Knights put on an offensive clinic, racking up 11 hits and capitalizing on key mistakes to extend their winning streak to three games!

CCBC Essex wasted no time getting on the board in the top of the first, as Freshman Lorenzo Rodriguez Pozo (Orlando, FL) roped a double to left field, followed by a fielder's choice RBI from Sophomore Justin Cook (Bradenton, FL) to grab an early lead. However, PGCC quickly answered, tying the game in the bottom of the frame with a triple from German and an RBI groundout by Manning.

The back-and-forth battle continued, but the Knights broke the tie in the second, thanks to an error that plated a run, followed by an RBI groundout from Freshman Laurin Guerra Guzman (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic) to make it 4-2. Once again, PGCC battled back, tying things at 4-4 after drawing two bases-loaded walks in the bottom half.

CCBC Essex exploded for four runs in the third, seizing an 8-4 lead behind a Casey Parsons (Freshman, Salisbury, MD) RBI double and a pair of costly PGCC errors. The Knights weren't done, adding four more runs in the fifth, highlighted by a solo blast from Cook and a two-run single from Sophomore Jimmy Perez (Queens, NY).

Just when it seemed CCBC Essex had control, PGCC rallied in the sixth, taking a brief 13-12 lead after a bases-loaded walk and an infield single. But the Knights refused to back down.

The seventh inning was all CCBC Essex! The Knights erupted for seven runs on four hits to flip the script for good, capped off by a clutch two-run single from Sophomore Eduardo Zayas (Cidra, PR).

On the mound, Freshman Austin Shiflett (Dundalk, MD) earned his first collegiate win, throwing 1.2 scoreless innings with two strikeouts and no walks. Sophomore Arnaldo Carrion (Wellington, FL) got the start, battling through four innings, while Sophomores Yariel Lopez (Cidra, PR) and Mitchell Hineline (Mount Wolf, PA) provided relief.

At the plate, the Knights were relentless:

For PGCC, German went 3-for-5, and Williams led with four RBIs. PGCC hitters worked 16 walks, but it wasn't enough to slow the Knights' relentless offense.

With the win, CCBC Essex improves to 3-2 overall and 1-0 in Region 20 play. They'll look to sweep the series as Game 2 starts 30 minutes after Game 1