After plays by outfielders Daniel Craig, Matt Hammond and infielder Lucas Bonham loaded the bases in the first inning, the Warriors swiftly got on the scoreboard during the match at Warrior Field on March 4.

First baseman Gil Solis drew a walk, bringing in outfielder Ryan Matsukawa for the game’s first run.

Warriors infielder Slater Nunez followed with an RBI single, allowing sophomore Bonham to score and extending the Warriors’ lead 2-0.

Freshman pitcher Cameron O’Neil delivered a stellar performance on the mound, leading the Warriors to a 3-1 victory over the Rio Hondo Roadrunners.

O’Neil, allowing one run on six hits over eight innings, struck out five and did not issue a walk.

“I was throwing up in the zone and hitting the spots that my coach wanted me to hit,” O’Neil said. “I could have improved hitting those spots later in the game. Kind of gave up a few hits, but got it done in the end.”

Despite a strong effort, Rio Hondo’s starting pitcher Mathew Leyva, took the loss, allowing three runs on five hits over seven innings. He struck out nine batters and walked two.

“Cam, our starting pitcher settled in, and kind of was on cruise control the whole game, and Slater came into the ninth inning and did a really good job,” Warriors coach Grant Palmer said.

Palmer and Rio Hondo’s coach, Mike Salazar, both praised their teams’ pitching performances, emphasizing the strength and composure they displayed on the mound.

“They scored in the first off my guy early and pretty much that was it that was the game,” Salazar said.

The Roadrunners found some momentum in the fifth inning when infielder Marcus Hernandez led off with a single and later crossed home plate on a laser hit up the middle from outfielder Dylan Slayton cutting the Warriors’ lead 2-1.

First baseman Dylan Mares extended the Warriors’ lead at the bottom of the seventh inning, blasting his first home run of the season right over the right-field fence to make it a 3-1 game.

“My first two at bats didn’t go the way I wanted them, and then I got my pitch and was able to get us on the board,” said Mares.

The Roadrunners posed a threat at the top of the eighth inning, putting runners on first and second base with one out.

But, at the bottom of the ninth inning, Slater Nunez took the mound and silenced their momentum, delivering a scoreless inning to secure the Warriors’ victory.

The Warriors will head to Whittier on Thursday, March 6 to take on the Rio Hondo Roadrunners again for the second game of the series, with the first pitch scheduled for 2 p.m.