The Cuesta College men’s baseball team completed its first of three pre-conference games against the Saddleback College Bobcats with a 10-5 loss.

The Cougars started the game off strong with an early lead of 1-0 in the first inning, asHank Hansen hit a double, bringing home Justin Lemaster from third. But it didn’t take long for Saddleback to answer back, tying the score at two in the second inning.

Tensions were high with the Cougars and the Bobcats fighting to keep the score tied until the bottom of the 5th inning when the Cougars began to play “sloppy,” according to Cuesta Head Coach Bob Miller. The Cougars made four errors, leading to three runs given to the Bobcats.

The Cougars were given an opportunity to get the runs back with bases loaded and no outs, but the next three batters struck out, resulting in the end of the inning.

By the ninth inning, the Bobcats scored five more runs, making the score 10-5, resulting in a loss for the Cougars for the first of the three-game series. 

Miller commended the team’s talent and potential they hold. “[They] are not playing baseball the way they want to right now, but when they play this kind of competition, they get exposed to areas where they are not that strong, and that gives them areas to work on and get better,” he said.

The Cougars and Bobcats continue the series this weekend with a game on Friday at 2 p.m and the last game of the series on Saturday at noon.  

“Tomorrow is a new day,” Miller said.