SALEM, Ore. (Feb. 17) – The Central Washington University baseball team swept Corban University in the final day of the series, finishing the series at 2-2.
The Wildcats improve to 5-5, while the Warriors fall to 8-8 on the year.
"We played better today," CWU Head Coach
Desi Storey said afterward. ". Overall, I think our pitching staff did a good job today. We had a few mistakes that cost us, but even when had a mistake we came back and got the next guy out. Offensively we were consistent all day, we put up numbers in almost every inning. This is a good place to be for us headed towards conference."
Mackenzie Gaul took the bump in game one for the Wildcats. The southpaw lasted just 2.2 innings, allowing three hits, one earned run, five walks, and he struck out two hitters.
Tyler Hoefer (1-0) earned the win in relief, hurling four innings and allowing just two hits.
Offensively, Michael Heinvetter finished 3-for-5, with a triple and three runs batted in.
Michael Peter picked up a pair of RBIs, while
James Smith III recorded one.
Dustin Braun had a two-hit game. The Wildcats recorded 12 hits as a unit. Heinvetter finished just a round tripper short of the cycle.
The Wildcats found the scoreboard on the first inning.
Christopher Dalto reached on a fielding error, allowing Braun to score for a 1-0 lead. Heineveter followed and singled to left field, driving in Smith.
A double steal in the bottom of the third inning gave the Warriors their first run, before they tied the game 2-2 in the sixth on a double. A single later in the inning brought home another run, giving the Warriors their first lead, 3-2, before Drew Lorea extended the lead to 4-2 with a single.
Down to their final strike in the ninth inning, the Wildcats had two runners aboard and Heinevetter at the plate. The senior outfielder ripped a triple, scoring both Smith and
Yi-Fan Pan. Peter followed suit, singling to right, scoring both
Ty Deckwa and
Mitch Lesmeister for a 6-4 lead. Smith then singled, scoring
Yi-an Pan for a 7-4 lead.
The Warriors got one back in the 10
th, but it was not enough as Central hung on for the 7-5 victory.
JJ Asinas (1-0) went six innings as the game two starter. He allowed six runs on five hits, with three walks and five strikeouts.
Dom Baker and
Keegan Kast combined for three innings of relief, allowing just one hit and one run.
Braun finished 3-for-5 in the backend of the doubleheader, driving in three runs and scoring once. Smith also collected a pair of hits and a pair of RBIs. Lesmiester swatted his first homerun of the season, part of a 2-for-4 outing. He scored three times as well.
Justin Hampson drove in a pair, while
Jon Pinto drove in one.
The Wildcats wasted no time getting on the board in game two. A groundout allowed Deckwa to score, giving Central an early 1-0 lead.
Lesmeister then swatted his solo shot in the second inning for a 2-0 advantage.
A sacrifice fly in the bottom of the second brought the Warriors within one, but Smith put CWU back on top by two with a trip in the third.
After a two-run bomb tied the game at 3-3 in the bottom of the fourth, a single from Braun in the top of the 5
th scored Deckwa a second time. Smith then followed with a single of his own, scoring Yi-Fan, and giving the Wildcats a 5-3 lead.
The Warriors scored once in the fifth on a single, but the Wildcats scored four times in the sixth.
The scoring started on a double from Pinto, scoring Yi-an. A wild pitch allowed
Colton Bunt to score from third, before yet another wild pitch gave Pinto a chance to scamper home. Later in the inning, Braun singled home Yi-Fan for the 9-4 lead.
In the seventh inning, Yi-an doubled home Lesmeister before scoring on a wild pitch, giving CWU an 11-4 lead advantage.
A three-run homerun in the bottom of the seventh cut the score to 11-7, but Hampson drove in both Lesmeister and Heinevetter with a double in the ninth for a 13-7 win.
The Wildcats are back in action on Friday (Mar. 2) and Saturday (Mar. 3) to open GNAC play in Nampa, Idaho against Northwest Nazarene.
