A seven-spot in the bottom half was highlighted by two hits from slump-busting senior firstbaseman Mike Piazza, who led off the uprising with a booming double to the leftcenter fence and then finished it with a hard single by the sprawling shortstop to score pinch runner John Molloy for a 12-1 lead.

After the leadoff double, senior third baseman Kyle Harper was hit by a pitch and Garrin Haile walked to load the bases. Up stepped senior Jesse McHenry, who had just entered the game in right field in the top half of the sixth, and poof his brief slump was over as he launched an impressive high-arching two-base bump to the right-center wall for two runs.

Junior shortstop Andres Rodriguez then was hit by a pitch for an alarming (and impressive) sixth time already this season to load ‘em up again, followed by senior centerfielder Karl Perez continuing his tremendous bat-work with a bullet to the left-center wall for a three-run double and a 10-1 advantage. Is he human?

Junior pinch-hitter Nick Mata then notched his third straight hit over the last three games with a single to plate Perez to make it 11-1.

In their previous at-bat, the Matadores turned a tight lead into a five-run cushion with a two-out rally started by Perez’s high, misplayed ball to leftfield and senior catcher Nick Mandry’s incredible 13th RBI of the season on a single to deep short. Pinch runner Cory Hightower then manufactured a run with his gifted legs by stealing second and third and racing home on a poor throw down to the catcher.

La Mirada, which hasn’t run much so far this season, added an element to its resurgent offense by running roughshod on the bases, stealing at least seven bases.

The Matadores opened up the scoring in the second on the first of Piazza’s three hits, a slashing single to left to bring in senior designated hitter Ray Chacon, who reached base on a fielder’s choice.

Chacon, who has become a run-producing robot, notched two more RBI in the third to take a 3-0 advantage on a laser-beam double to the leftfield wall to score Rodriguez (walk) and Perez (fielder’s choice, although he deserved a sacrifice bunt when a highly questionable call at third ruled out junior right fielder Nicko Lancaster).

Poncedeleon, with an errorless defense behind him, cruised to a six-hit, seven-strikeout performance highlighted with no base on balls. The pitching staff has cut way down on its walks lately and the scoreboard has certainly reflected that.

In the first, senior leftfielder Justin Torres turned on the jets again to make another Gold Glove play, diving to snare a sinking line drive. Mandry then nailed a runner leaning too far off first base in the second and Rodriguez’s cannon arm gunned down another batter from deep in the hole with the help of a nice stretch by Piazza.

In the fifth, Poncedeleon did most of the damage himself with two strikeouts, and senior Mitch “Moundfreak” Petersen did the same in his mop-up work in the seventh.