Trailing 4-2 in the top of the ninth inning with one out and the bases loaded, there's was nobody the West Valley baseball team wanted to see striding to the plate more than Curran Ozawa-Burns. Ozawa-Burns, who has hit 12 homers since 2020, rocketed a shot over the center field fence to lift the Vikings to a much-needed 7-4 win at previously-undefeated Modesto.
The Vikings (4-7) opened the ninth with a walk to Aron Cox, who come home on a Jacob Dressler single, and back-to-back bases on balls to Henry Wright and Cole Murchison. Ozawa-Burns' dinger scored Zachary Apostolo, pinch-running for Murchison, Dressler and Wright to give the Vikings a 7-4 lead. Mitchell Nagel gave up a two-out double to Carlos Vasquez, but then ended the game by striking out Modesto's Payton Rios. The Pirates took their first loss of the season and fell to 9-1.
Dressler ended the day 2-3 with two runs scored and an RBI, Evan Meier had two hits and an RBI, and Connor Leaverton knocked in a run with a single. Nagle picked up the win in three innings of relief of starter Ryan Sleeman, who scattered five hits and K'd nine Pirates in six innings of work.
The Vikings take on Coast rival Mission (8-2) Tuesday (2/22) in a non-conference contest. First pitch is 1:00pm.