ELLENSBURG, Wash (March. 14) – The Central Washington University baseball team took three game of a four-game home stand versus Northwest Nazarene University Saturday afternoon, completing a suspended game two, and spitting games three and four.
The Wildcats closed out game two early in the morning to give the team its second of three wins during the series.
The Wildcats move to 12-10 overall and 6-6 in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference as the Crusaders fall to 13-11 and 4-4 in conference.
Game One CWU 6 NNU 5The Wildcats jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead.
Jonathan Dailey and
Ryan Atkinson both doubled home runs in the first inning.
Honeysett would strike again in the third inning with sixth home run of the year to increase the Wildcat lead to 3-1, after the Crusaders snuck a run across in the second inning.
The ball game would remain scoreless until the eighth inning when NNU reclaimed the lead with three runs to leave the score at 4-3.
Starter
Dustin Hamilton worked four strong innings in his second start of the year, giving up three hits and striking out four Crusaders.
Alhanon Miller followed Hamilton with three flawless innings, only surrendering three hits while striking out two.
The Wildcats would tie the game in the bottom of the eighth when
Kasey Bielec hit a game-tying home run.
Game one would roll into extra innings, and after the Crusaders took a one-run lead in the top of the tenth, the Wildcats mounted their comeback.
Cory Welch led off the inning with a hit-by-pitch, and Bielec found his way on base in the same fashion. Down to a final strike,
Ryan Atkinson ripped a double down the leftfield line that scored Welch for the tying run.
"I was just trying to stay within myself," Atkinson said of his game-tying hit. "This team is coming together at the right time and I was just trying to do my part for these guys."
Benjamin Dunbar ended the game with a hot shot off the Crusader third basemen's glove for the walk off.
Game Two CWU 6 NNU 7Freshman
Jacob Forrester toed the slab for the Wildcats in the final game. The freshman got the start after coming off an injury and worked three innings allowing five runs.
The Wildcats rebounded in the third inning with three runs to overtake the Crusaders 3-2 when the hero from game two,
Ryan Atkinson, hit his first of two home runs of the contest. Atkinson jettisoned a ball into the mighty Ellensburg wind that blows out to right for a go-ahead three-run shot.
Northwest Nazarene responded with two runs in the top of the fifth to reclaim the lead over Central Washington 7-4, but the home team would respond, yet again. After Bielec led off the home fifth with a stand up triple to centerfield, Dailey drove him in with a productive groundout to the second basemen. With the score 7-5, Atkinson stepped to the plate again and unloaded on a 1-0 fastball that sailed out to left for his second of the day.
Reliever
Mitch Yada finished the game going four innings of five-hit ball while striking out eight Crusaders.
The Wildcats threatened again in the final at-bats in the seventh inning. The home team loaded the bases on a pair of walks and an Atkinson single, only to fall short on a
Ryan Archibald groundout.
"I think we're feeling better about ourselves in terms of what we want to accomplish," Head coach
Desi Storey said. "We have to get focused to go on the road and learn how to win on the road. When we go on the road we have to set to tone early and not press so much. We are excited to get back out there and continue this good play."
The Wildcats will travel to Saint Martin's University next weekend as the Wildcat look to improve on their GNAC record.
Game one will begin Saturday, March 21., with first pitch set for 1 p.m.
Follow all the action with livestats at Wildcatsports.com
