In a welcome recovery after stumbling in the first two games starting the second leg of Western State Conference competition, Moorpark College powered past local rivals Pierce College, 5-2, in the hot afternoon sun at Raiders Stadium, Tuesday, April 5.

With the game tied 2-2 in the bottom of the seventh inning, Dalton Duarte’s three-run homer to left center drove the Raiders to its first win after three losses in a row.

“My fastball command was spotty, but I got a lot of swings and misses on my off-speed pitches which carried me through the game,” said Raiders’ starter John Cashman, whose record is 6-2 with two saves. “I like starting because you can control your tempo, compared to getting in the game late and dealing with what has already been done.”

Garrett Kueber’s one out double set the table for the Raiders in the seventh. With two outs, Riley Conlan walked and Duarte stepped up to the plate. In a scenario eerily similar to his home run a week earlier, the ball looked catchable, but it landed just over the fence.

“Off the bat it didn’t feel too great, but once I saw where it was going, I knew it was [gone],” said Duarte, who has a team record with six home runs this season.

In what has become a predictable scenario, the Raiders bucked early with two runs in the first. Leadoff hitter Kueber’s single was followed by Terrell Tate’s single to shallow center, and Conlan’s RBI base hit to left drove in Moorpark’s first run. With one out, Jack Rosenberg’s RBI single to left delivered the second, 2-0.

“They were able to scrap a run in the late innings and then Dalton came up huge for us,” said Conlan. “We got a few runs in the beginning and Cashman helped keep us in the game.”

The Brahmas responded with a run in the bottom of the second. Back-to-back walks to Brendan Lavallee and Tyler Eastman followed by a bunt by Tyler Dietrich put runners in scoring position. Edgar Vila’s RBI single to center made the score 2-1.

“Cashman isn’t a starter, but he went out and got us through seven,” third baseman Blake Chiaramonte said. “Then Mike [Deleon] came in and he pitched very well.”

Pierce tied it in the seventh when leadoff hitter Dietrich’s double was followed by Vila’s bunt driving him to third. Cashman’s passed ball to the backstop made it 2-2.

“I struggled in the last inning finding the zone with my slider, but got out of it with [rightfielder] Jack Rosenberg’s help,” said Deleon happily. “He dove and [bobbled] it, but he got it back in his glove.”

The Raiders play Ventura College in the final leg of the four-game WSC series at Raiders Stadium on Tuesday, April 12 at 2:30 p.m.