Community College Baseball : Tellers Leads Dons to 7-0 Win

David Tellers pitched a six-hit shutout to lead Rancho Santiago College to a 7-0 victory over Cypress Tuesday in the Orange Empire Conference baseball opener for both teams at Rancho Santiago.

Cypress threatened only once against Tellers, a freshman right-hander from Western High School. Cypress loaded the bases in the eighth but still couldn’t score.

After walks to Rey Hernandez and Mike Park, Paul Bunch lined what looked like a run-scoring single up the middle. But the ball struck the base umpire on the ankle and deflected to third baseman Dave Kirkpatrick, forcing Hernandez to hold at third.

Tellers (4-1) then got Rick Nen to hit into a force play at the plate and Dave Brodt and Mike Connolly to fly out to end the inning.

Brodt is playing shortstop in place of Trevor Hoffman, who was spiked in the knee and is expected to miss the first week of conference play.

Rancho Santiago (1-0, 11-3) led by 3-0 going into the sixth and scored four runs on a hit, five walks and a hit batter.

Starter Erik Silvey (2-2) opened the sixth by hitting Scott Swearingen. After a sacrifice, he walked Frank Appice and Troy Barnhart. He got Bob Brucato to pop to short for the second out, but Brent Reese doubled in three runs to give Rancho Santiago a 6-0 lead.

Rancho Santiago had taken a 2-0 lead in the second on back-to-back triples by Todd Lloyd and Kirkpatrick and a ground out by Swearingen.

Brucato’s home run in the third made it 3-0.

Tony Mendoza had two singles for Cypress (0-1, 14-7).