BEAVERS SWEPT BY BUTTE IN UNUSUAL FASHION          

American River College and Butte College played three of the fastest college baseball games of the year on Thursday and Friday with Butte coming out on top in all three.  On Thursday the teams played a double header in which both games took two hours and 15 minutes each.  Butte won the first game 5-2 despite the Beavers out-hitting the Roadrunners 9-8.  Freshman 2B Jayden Reynolds (Bella Vista) had a double and a triple in the game.  The second game was played equally as fast but the Beavers dropped that one 3-2.  Sophomore RF Wyatt Bahlke (Woodcreek) got the Beavers on top early with a two run single in the first inning and Sophomore LHP Luke Ostien (Rosemount, MN) held Butte scoreless for the first five innings but the Roadrunners tied the game in the 6^th inning and then took the lead in the 8^th.  Fridays game was a similar story as the Beavers jumped on top 3-0 in the 2^nd inning when Freshman 2B Ben Hanson (Woodland) jumped on a fastball, singling to center to pick up his first RBI of the season.  After Sophomore LF Marcus Babauta (St. Mary’s) walked Sophomore 3B Brett Griffiths (Jesuit) tripled to left center to put ARC up 3-0.  The score remained the same until the bottom of the 6^th when Butte scored three times off of Sophomore LHP Anthony Ocanas (Woodland), with two of the runs being unearned to tie the game.  In the 7^th inning with Ocanas facing his  last batter he gave up a solo home run on a 1-2 pitch to put Butte on top 4-3.  The Beavers had a chance to tie the game in the 8^th inning when Griffiths doubled off the left field fence to put runners and 2^nd and 3^rd with one out but Butte’s pitching was able to wriggle out of the jam.  Arc threatened again in the 9^th getting the tying run to 2^nd base with one out but again could not score.  On the three game series the Beavers out-hit Butte 20-18, and had one more extra base hit, yet could not find a way to win.  Friday’s game took two hours and five minutes.  The Beavers will travel to Skyline College in San Bruno on Tuesday weather permitting.