Ed Petruska Pinal Central

SIGNAL PEAK – The Central Arizona College baseball team solidified its hold on first place in the Arizona Community College Athletic Conference with a doubleheader sweep of Yavapai on Saturday at McSwain Field.

The fourth-ranked Vaqueros defeated the Roughriders 6-2 and 10-2 to improve their ACCAC record to 12-2. Central, which has won eight straight, is 19-5 overall.

CAC used six pitchers in the twinbill, and they combined for 32 strikeouts in 16 innings. The team's overall ERA is 2.65. Earlier in the week, the Vaqueros posted 9-0 and 11-1 wins over GateWay.

"Our pitching staff has been doing really well," CAC coach Anthony Gilich said. "The guys have been outstanding."

The Vaqueros struck quickly and with ferocity in the seven-inning opener, batting around in a five-run first inning. Central had only two hits, but both were huge – Lou Albrecht's two-run double followed by Mario Bejarano's three-run homer.

"It's nice to get a lead like that," Gilich said. "It allows everyone to play free and loose."

The rally began with Ashtin Webb drawing a one-out walk. Yavapai starter Barrett Skaugrud then hit the next two batters – Jonathon Hernandez and Blake Avila – to load the bases. Next came Albrecht's double to left followed by Bejarano's second homer of the season, a no-doubt blast to right.

Skaugrud limited the Vaqueros to two hits during the next four innings, allowing two-out singles to Hernandez in the second and Tyrese Johnson in the fourth. Skaugrud retired 14 of the final 17 batters he faced before departing after five innings.

CAC's final run came in the sixth. Marcus Harrison walked, took third on an errant pickoff throw by reliever Kaden Schiefelbein and scored on a passed ball.

The Roughriders (8-10, 5-7 ACCAC) tallied both of their runs in the fifth off Central starter Matt Wilkinson (5-0), who gave up an RBI single to Blake Jacklin and a bases-loaded walk to Ethan Thomas.

The left-handed Wilkinson issued five walks, one more than his season total coming in. Despite his uncharacteristic wildness, Wilkinson struck out 11 and surrendered just three hits – all singles. He has registered 59 strikeouts in 35 innings pitched this season and given up just six earned runs.

"That was a challenging outing for him," Gilich said. "Tug struggled with his command but he leaned on his competitiveness."

Josh Aribal pitched the final two innings for CAC to notch his third save. The right-hander struck out the side in order in the sixth and overcame a leadoff walk in the seventh to finish off the Roughriders.

Patrick Steitz (4-1) pitched six shutout innings as the Game 2 starter for CAC, striking out 12. The sophomore right-hander gave up three hits and walked none.

"His stuff has been a lot better this year," Gilich said. "He's been able to put guys away when he gets two strikes on them."

The Vaqueros scored one run in the second and one in the third. A five-run fourth extended the lead to 7-0. They tacked on two in the seventh and one in the eighth.

Central finished with seven hits, with nobody getting more than one. The Vaqueros drew seven walks and had five stolen bases.

"We kind of used a little bit of everything to score runs," Gilich said.

Kooper Schulte had two RBIs. Driving in one run apiece were Webb, Hernandez, Albrecht, Bejarano, Harrison and Braydon Rogers.

CAC used three relievers in the second game. Michael Trausch struck out the side in order in the eighth and Jack Seward worked a scoreless ninth, striking out two.