Tower Buzzers Open Second Half With 10-1 Win Over Quakes

ONTARIO, Calif. — The Ontario Tower Buzzers didn’t waste any time shaking off Thursday night’s loss. They came out swinging Friday, exploding for 10 runs in the third and fourth innings and cruising past the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes, 10-1.

That win bumps Ontario to 34-33 overall and puts an exclamation point on the start of the second half. Suddenly, the six-game series is all knotted up at two wins each.

Early on, both pitchers held steady; nobody crossed the plate in the first two innings. Rancho’s Alton Davis II worked around a single from Joendry Vargas, and Ontario’s Hyun-Seok Jang cruised with five strikeouts and just one hit allowed.

Things changed in a hurry in the bottom of the third. Conner O’Neal kicked it off by smashing a solo shot to right-center. Just two pitches later, Mairoshendrick Martinus sent another one out, this time to straightaway center. Back-to-back home runs. Suddenly, Ontario was on top.

After a strikeout, Jaron Elkins lined a double and came around on an RBI double from Chase Harlan. Harlan jogged home, too, after a Davis balk. The rally kept rolling. Easton Shelton singled, Vargas knocked him in with yet another double, and when Rancho dipped into their bullpen, Landyn Vidourek welcomed them with an RBI double of his own. Finally, O’Neal capped the seven-run inning with a single to bring home Vidourek. Just like that, Ontario led 7-0.

They didn’t stop there. In the fourth, Lindsey worked a walk, Elkins roped his second double to score him, and Brendan Tunink brought Elkins home with a sac fly. Then Shelton belted his 21st homer of the season, a solo shot to right-center. The lead ballooned to 10-0.

Jang took it from there, putting together his best start in a while. He looked steady through 4.2 innings, giving up just one run on three hits, racking up nine strikeouts, and getting out of jams whenever the Quakes threatened. Rancho loaded the bases in the fourth, but Jang fanned Jonathan Linares to stomp out the rally.

Rancho’s one bright spot was Kevyn Castillo’s solo home run in the fifth. Other than that, their bats slipped into silence: just four hits all night and an 0-for-7 mark with runners in scoring position.

Ontario’s bullpen made sure things stayed quiet. Jholbran Herder, Brock Stewart, Jhonny Jimenez, and Jecsua Liborius gave up just one hit over the last 4.1 innings. Liborius handled the ninth like a pro, striking out all three hitters he saw.

The Buzzers finished with 13 hits, homers from O’Neal, Martinus, and Shelton, plus a parade of doubles from Elkins and Harlan. Guys like Vargas, Vidourek, and O’Neal all plated multiple runs during that wild third inning.

The series picks up again Saturday night, and Ontario’s got some momentum. They’ll try to keep it rolling and lock up their third win in four games.