-Blade - Contributing Writer Central Arizona College Athletics

(Yuma) - "He's rolling now, his last two starts are probably his best of the season." - Head Coach Anthony Gilich on 5-0 starting pitcher Mat Olsen

The starter for game one against a quite-tough Arizona Western squad was Mat Olsen and again, he's biting corners, putting pitches in places that are extremely difficult to hit well (if at all), and striking out batters in a variety of ways.

Olsen threw another reliable five innings, sitting down ten and not giving up an earned run.

"I love playing behind that guy" said currently banged up third baseman Tyler Griggs a few weeks back.

I'm sure that sentiment is not unique.

Olsen got his 5th win of the season and shrunk his ERA down to 0.62, and with four doubles, a triple and homerun from catcher Seth Beckstead, Central took a fairly close first game 8-3 in seven innings.

Central Game 1 Starter Mat Olsen

Central sacrificed, stole a few bases, and nipped around the first five innings to take a slight 5-3 lead after six innings while Olsen did his work around a few "defensive "things". In the top of the seventh, the Vaquero bats gave reliever Drew Sommers a bunch of room by bringing in three more runs. After a Hayden Seldomridge walk, it was a double from Jake Jarvis, and Beckstead ripped a triple into the left-centerfield gap scoring two runs, and then came home on a Devon Dixon double.

JD McLaughlin doubled in a first inning run and Seldomridge added a two-run double in the third.

Sommers struck out the side in the bottom of the seventh for a door-slammer and a final of 8-3.

"Sommers has been great" said the head coach. "He's valuable out of the pen and can start. He has a lot of depth to his talent. He's a bullet guy."

Sommers earned a save in game one.

For game two, Daniel Davila started with four straight scoreless innings and after the Matadors punched it around a little in the fifth, a little more in the sixth, they took a 3-0 lead.

"We always talk about answering right away when we're behind" said Gilich.

"A little at a time is what we talk about."

A perfect example of that is falling behind 7-0 in the JUCO World Series Championship in 2019.

Central answered with four in the bottom of the first after giving seven in the top, and won the JUCO 13-8.

All a little at a time.

Right back in the top of the seventh, Central tied the game 3-3. Matt Aribal, Preston Godfrey, Kiko Romero and McLaughlin ripped four consecutive hits, McLaughlin's being a ground-rule double bringing home two, and Seldomridge brought him home with an RBI groundout.

"That was the biggest hit of the game" continued Gilich referring to an eighth inning pinch hit homerun.

Dusty Garcia (hitting for Dixon) hit an offspeed 1-1 pitch out of rightfield to break a 3-3 tie in the top of the eighth, and Mat Aribal hit another immediately after to put CAC up 5-3

What followed in the eighth is a champions play.

Down two, the Matadors put runners on first and third with nobody out.

On a ground ball to third baseman Vinnie Lagatta with both runners going, there was a rundown starting with the throw home with catcher Beckstead making the first out tag, racing at the runner who started on first that tried for third. It's another rundown between second and third and it ends up 5-2-4-6.

Two outs with a runner on first, the two run lead is preserved.

"What just happened???"

That was maybe what the sole Matador left on base was thinking.

Or maybe....

"At least I kept us out of a triple play."

Liam Evans threw a scoreless bottom of the ninth punching out two for a save, and Shane Spencer in relief of Davila got the win (2-0).

The final was 6-3 and Central moves to 20-0 on the season.

"We don't ever talk about a streak or anything" said Gilich.

It's about next up.

It's a Tuesday conference-two at Pima Community College, and back at The Big House Saturday hosting Eastern Arizona.