SPORTS

Editor: Daniel Hernandez viewpoints.managing@gmail.com SPORTS

March 17, 2022 7

AUSJA NOLAN | VIEWPOINTS Giancarlo Flores, Riverside City College freshman pitcher, throws the frst pitch of the game and strikes out his opponent.

Down to the wire

Tigers lose conference game in last inning

XAVIER CONSTANTINO STAFF REPORTER

The Riverside City College Tigers lost to the Saddleback Bobcats 5-2 in the frst game of the Orange Empire Conference on March 8.

Giancarlo Flores, freshman starting pitcher for the Tigers, took the mound and went on to pitch seven innings, facing 28 batters, and gave up only a run.

The teams were held up offensively through four innings with most of the Tigers’ contact leading to an out. The Bobcats were struck out six times and only got on base three times.

However, it was freshman shortstop Sebastian Flores who got the Tigers the frst hit of the day with a single in the top of the ffth-inning.

Freshman center felder Julian Alvarez came up to the plate with two outs and two men on base.

He gave the Tigers their frst

runs of the game with a hard hit two RBI single down the middle into the outfeld grass. The Tigers were up 2-0 after fve innings. A couple innings later, the Bobcats had a two-out rally in the seventh and gained a run back to make it 2-1. The Bobcats rallied with two outs with the help of a couple back-to-back walks and errors. The Tigers were down 5-2 in the ninth inning. From football cleats to track spikes

LEROY OROZCO STAFF REPORTER

Freshman wide receiver Joshua Hornsby had set his sights on running track since stepping onto campus for the frst time.

He believed it could aid him in garnering more effcient skills for the upcoming 2022 football season. At the RCC Invitational meet on March 4, Hornsby put his explosive and quick athleticism on display.

From the sound of the gun fring to speeding through the fnish line, all eyes were on Hornsby who fnished frst in his 110-meter hurdle race. With an impressive time of 14.28 seconds, Hornsby never took his foot off the gas the entire race.

“It’s a different game really,” Hornsby said when discussing the difference between the two sports. “In track, it’s really your own lane and own race, and in football you need to be together as a team.”

Regardless of what sport he competes in, it’s safe to say Hornsby will always be a factor for his team.

As for Hornby’s football teammate, Imari Coats, he too competed in the 110-meter hurdles this past invitational meet. Coats is also a freshman, and when he’s not running on the track, he’s on the defensive line looking to sack the opposing quarterback.

Coats has been playing football almost his entire life, and when he entered high school, he decided to

STEPHEN DAY | VIEWPOINTS Riverside City College Tiger Lovewyn Don-Willies, 6, crosses the fnish line and took 5th place in the men’s 100-meter with a time of 11.03 seconds March 4 at the RCC Invitational. give track a try as well. He went on to enjoy both sports throughout his high school career, so he desired to pursue both here at RCC.

“It still moves as fast as football, but there’s always going to be downs, fags and injuries that slow down the ball game,” Coats said. “For track, it’s just the simple pull of the trigger and you’re off.”

The speed of both sports is completely different, but there are things an athlete can learn in track that which may translate to another sport. The fnal athlete from football, defensive back Lovewyn DonWillies, competed in the 100-meter dash. Like his fellow teammates, he too believed he could gain a competitive edge on the gridiron by running track. Not only that, but Don-Willies claims it’s benefcial to his body to do new activities. That way, it can grow and adapt to new movements. “Speed obviously, and athleticism. And then just doing something new for your body; switch it up a little bit,” DonWillies said. With Don-Willies playing defensive back during the fall, opposing offenses will always have to account for his blazing speed and outstanding athleticism.

Swim and dive team shows potential

MYA ALINA CASTRO STAFF REPORTER

Riverside City College women’s swim and dive team fell short of frst place at the RCC Invitational and took second overall while the men’s team placed sixth.

Orange Coast College beat the Tigers by just 43 points. RCC top swimmers Valerie Juarez, Loren Loffelmacher and Pilar Lara helped the team accumulate a total of 863 points in the meet.

Coach Doug Finfrock is looking forward to seeing the team win as the team progresses through the season.

“The girls have been swimming strong, we’ve won a few meets and their times are getting better,” Finfrock said. “I like where we’re at and I think we have the potential to have a successful season.”

Loffelmacher placed frst in two of four events during the meet this past weekend. She was able to accumulate 69 points for the team and plans on working harder the rest of the season to see more successful meets.

“I hope to get first in the conference,” Loffelmacher said. “I think we have a really good shot at getting that this season.”

Loffelmacher also has expectations for herself and says that showing up to every practice and working hard will get her to where she wants to be.

“I would like to go to state and I’d also like STEPHEN DAY | VIEWPOINTS to get frst in the women’s 200 IM and 400 IM in Swimmers take their mark as the next heat

Sports Briefs

RCC Alumni

JC Jackson, former RCC football player, signed a 5 year $82 million dollar deal with the Los Angeles Chargers.

Track and Field

After a strong showing at the Ben Brown Invitational on March 12, the men’s and women’s track and field team will compete at the RCC Open on March 18.

Men’s Golf

The RCC men’s golf beat College of the Desert with a total of 454 points March 14. They will play next at the Socal preview, an OEC neutral game, March 21.

Softball

RCC lost to Long Beach City College 3-4 March 14. Their next matchup will be March 18 against Santa Ana College.

Baseball

RCC loss against Saddleback College 7-5. Baseball’s next matchup will be against Santa Ana College on March 17.

Beach Volleyball

RCC lost to San Diego City College 3-2 and beat Santa Ana College 4-1 on March 11. They face off next against Cypress College on March 18.

Women’s Tennis

RCC beat Cypress College 7-2 on March 10. On March 17 They’ll face off against Saddleback College.

Men’s Tennis

RCC lost to Irvine Valley College on March 15. On March 17 they will be facing Saddleback College.

All of these dates are subject to change due to To stay up to date on upcoming campus events, visit the Viewpoints calendar listed at viewpointsonline.org.

If you have events happening on campus that you want featured on the calendar, send information about the event to viewpoints.news@ gmail.com.

PHOTOS BY STEPHEN DAY

An RCC swimmer practices laps while waiting for the next heat at the RCC Aquatics Complex March 11 at the RCC Invitational.

Diving into competition

DIVE from Page 7

in conference,” Loffelmacher said.

With a total of 295 points, the men’s team placed sixth overall at the invitational out of 10 teams. Freshmen Ben McCombs, Yanis Massignan, and Seth Zarn lead the team with a total of 103 points combined.

McCombs’ placed seventh place in the men’s 200 yard fy coming in at 2 minutes and 21.07 seconds.

McCombs believes that even though the team had a slow start to the season, there’s still hope for them to see more success in later meets.

“The season started off pretty slow but because we put in a lot of practice and effort we’re making progress,” McCombs said. “Our times are improving as a team so I think we are doing well.” Judges watch as a diver attempts to stick his dive at the RCC Aquatics Complex on March 11 at the RCC Invitational.