Oilers Conquer Vikings 3-1, Improving To 4-0 On The Young Season
Jayton Greer belts first home run of the season, while Jared Grindlinger leads the pitching staff to another masterful performance
The Huntington Beach Oilers (4-0) take game two of this series and now look towards sweeping the Marina Vikings (7-4) Wednesday afternoon from HBHS Stadium. The Oilers have begun Sunset League play with three consecutive victories, totalling a combined score of 13-5. Jared Grindlinger, who displayed poise and dominance in his first start of the year, tossed three perfect innings along with a pair of strikeouts. New faces emerged from the bullpen as well with Ashton Arroyo securing two scoreless frames and Dane Cunningham picking up one strikeout in two-thirds of an inning. Utility specialist, Ethan Porter, locked down his first save of the year, facing five batters and pulling the string on two. The Oilers had a potential no-hit bid broken up with two outs in the fourth inning on a line drive single to centerfield by DH Nick Mizoguchi.
The deep ball played a factor once again for Huntington Beach as first baseman Jayton Greer got the party started in the second with a 281-foot blast over the short porch in left field, tucked near the foul pole. After a CJ Weistein RBI Double in the third, Trent Grindlinger catapulted his third homer in as many games over the left-center wall, measuring at 382 feet. This being the longest home run of the three thus far this season.
By securing the series win, the Oilers have now won 15 of their last 16 head-to-head matchups against the Vikings, dating back to 2017. Over the past 20 years, the Oilers own a .658 winning percentage (25-13-1) in this Sunset League rivalry.
Oilers Scoring Plays:
Bottom 2: Jayton Greer Homers to LF (1-0 HB)
Bottom 3: CJ Weinstein DOuble to RF, Trevor Goldenetz Scores (2-0, HB)
Bottom 5: Trent Grindlinger Homers to LF (3-1, HB)
Stars of the Game:
Trent Grindlinger: Solo HR
Jayton Greer: Solo HR
Jared Grindlinger: 3 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, 2 K
Ashton Arroyo: 2 IP, 0 ER, 1 K
Ethan Porter: 1.1 IP, 0 ER, 2 K
The Oilers will return to Sunset League action tomorrow, March 20, as they hit the road for game two of a three-game series against the Fountain Valley Barons. You can listen to the game on hbhsathletics.mixlr.com with the "Voice of the Oilers" Dominick Lorenz, beginning at 3:00 PM with the pregame show followed by first pitch at 3:15 PM!
LISTEN TO HUNTINGTON BEACH VS. MARINA HIGHLIGHTS HERE (CLICK IMAGE BELOW):
