Skyline snapped a three-game losing streak Tuesday with one of its best offensive showings of the season, downing No. 7-ranked Mission 10-5 at the Skyline diamond.
The Trojans (7-11, 10-20) scored four runs in the first and five more in the third to stake Nick Paton to an early lead. The right-hander went five-plus innings to earn the win, improving his record to 3-5. Mission starter Chris Gomez – who entered into play ranked second in the state in wins – took the loss, his record falls to 8-3. Skyline sophomore Daniel Loppiparo earned the save, his second of the year.
In the first, Skyline set the table with small ball and then went big. Robin Lausen started the four-run rally with an infield single before A.J. Santiago bunted him to second. After Joey Carney reached on an infield error and Cory Faubel walked to load the bases, Lucciano Molina got Skyline on the board with a two-run double. Lance Montano followed with a two-run single to give the Trojans a 4-0 lead.
In the fifth, Skyline sent 10 batters to the plate amid a five-run rally. After Carney drew a one-out walk, Faubel singled, and Molina followed with an RBI single. With runners at first and third, Faubel scored on a wheel-steel of home. After a walk to Montano, Michael Thompson singled allowing Molina to score on a throwing error. Nine-hitter Nick Serrata followed with an opposite-field double to right to score a pair, giving Skyline a 9-0 lead.
In the sixth, Mission and Skyline traded runs. Mission plated a run on a double play, but Skyline responded in the bottom of the frame when Molina lashed an RBI single to plate Santiago. In the sixth, Mission plated four with RBI singles from Ray Fuentes and Reed Kienle, in addition to a pair of unearned runs.
Molina paced the Trojans with a 3-for-4 day at the plate, moving him into the team lead with 23 hits on the season. The freshman infielder notched four RBIs and scored two runs. Mission cleanup hitter Andy Furia was 3 for 4 with two runs scored for the Saints.
Skyline’s 10-run outpouring is its second best single-game run total of the season, after its 15-3 win over Canada on March 21.
