Jonathan Erb sliced an outside fastball the other way into left field with two outs and the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth as the first-place Oxnard College baseball team extended its winning streak to nine games with a come-from-behind 4-3 win over visiting rival Ventura on Tuesday afternoon.

Oxnard (15-5), which maintained its two-game lead in the Western State Conference's North Division by improving to 7-0, had gone the first eight innings without a lead for the first time this season.

Sophomore Justin Bricker scattered seven hits and struck out six to improve to 3-1 with his second complete game.

Ventura wasted a nice start from sophomore Anthony Martinez, who didn't allow a hit until Erb led off the fifth inning by lining a single to right field

Yet Ventura (6-10, 1-6) suffered its fifth straight loss despite leading 2-0 after three innings and 3-1 in the eighth.

The Condors only entered the ninth even, 3-3, by the margin of a shoelace.

VC sophomore Derek Ring was 3 for 4 with a pair of RBI singles to push the Pirates ahead 3-1 entering the bottom of the eighth inning.

But Aguayo laced a leadoff triple down the right field line and Willson followed with an RBI single.

After a sacrifice bunt and a ground out moved Willson to third with two outs, second baseman Ring had a spike on his lead left cleat catch on the shoelace on his trailing right foot and cause a game-tying throwing error.

BOX SCORE

Oxnard 4, Ventura 3
WSC North
Ventura 002 000 100--3 7 2
Oxnard 000 010 021--4 11 3
Martinez, Hotchkiss (6), Pinto (6), Hong (8) and Lipman; Bricker and Lipman. W -- Bricker (1-0). L -- Hong (0-1). 3B -- Oxnard: Aguayo.
Team records -- Oxnard 15-5, 7-0; Ventura 6-10, 1-6.