Instantly, the De Anza College Dons baseball team began to show the City College of San Francisco Rams what they are made of with their high energy and confidence.

Freshman pitcher Lucas Yovanovich (No. 26) pitched all nine innings and left the Rams scoreless till the end.

The Dons first scored in the second inning as a result of a single by sophomore Shane Billings (No. 7). The single allowed freshman Jason Kim (No. 30) to score their first run.

The energy was exuberant in the second inning with family and friends cheering on the team, seeing that the players were all warmed up.

Yovanovich (No. 26) pitched a remarkable game, not letting the CCSF players’ jeers and chants put any pressure on him. He instead used that as ammunition when he pitched the ball their way. Yovanovichs’ mother commented on her son’s ability to remain calm despite all the jeers. “They’ve been having a good season but I don’t know how my son does it, I couldn’t be on the mound with all that pressure”, she said.

Each time one of the opposing players stepped up to bat it was but a blink of an eye that Yovanovich would put them right back in the dugout with the rest of their teammates trying to make it to first base. When it was getting closer to the end of the game the Dons even made a few double plays, which only raised the frustration of the opposing team.

The Dons worked together, encouraging one another along the way, which led to their 5-0 win against San Francisco. Throughout the game the runs just kept coming since CCSF’s outfielders weren’t as polished as the Dons’ were.

The Dons’ win over San Francisco is significant because it allows the Dons to qualify for the playoffs.

“It was a very important game since we lost four games to Chabot and we only have three games left in the season. This also gives us a good chance at making it to the playoffs if we win these last three games and we haven’t done that in ten years”, said Coach Ralph Maldonado.