WALLA WALLA, Wash. - The Whitman College baseball team lost a nail biter in the opener then blew out the Loggers in the nightcap to earn a doubleheader split with the University of Puget Sound in Northwest Conference action on Saturday afternoon at Borleske Stadium.
Prior to the doubleheader, Whitman College unveiled the Edwards-Moore Clubhouse, a state-of-the-art facility in support of the Whitman baseball team named after distinguished program alumni Jock Edwards and Jim Moore.
UPS 2 Whitman 1
Julien Hernandez had to battle through early adversity as the Loggers (11-14, 3-7 NWC) put a runner on third base in both the first and second innings. Hernandez came up with key two-out strikeouts in both innings to keep UPS off the board.
A pitchers duel then ensued as Hernandez and Davis Franklin comfortably navigated their opposing lineups. Franklin broke the stalemate in the fifth when he helped his own cause by scoring off a Brock Makashima RBI base hit. The Blues (15-8, 10-4 NWC) tied the game one inning later when Brandon Ting scored off a Jack Bickerton sacrifice fly.Â
Neither team scored again until Jack McCuller took a Wyatt Adams pitch over the left field fence. Whitman looked prime to tie the game or deliver a walk-off win in the bottom of the ninth as Sam Mieszkowski-Lapping drew a one-out walk which put Christian Rivera in scoring position at second base. The Blues would be unable to drive home either baserunner as UPS escaped with the game one win.
Hernandez struck out 11 hitters in seven complete innings but did not factor in the decision. Franklin threw a complete game and posted 12 strikeouts in picking up the win.
Whitman 12 UPS 7
Game two saw Halen Otte (2 H, 2 R, 3 RBI) and Brandon Ting (3 H, 3 R, 4 RBI) both hit a pair of homeruns en route to a resounding win for the Blues.
The Loggers picked up where they left off, scoring two runs over the first two innings which included a solo homer from Drew Kamihara (1 H, 1 R, 1 RBI).
That momentum would be short-lived as Whitman's bats came alive and in a big way. With Whitman trailing by one run, Ting, already with a solo homerun, delivered a three-run shot over the left centerfield fence to put the Blues up 4-2. One batter later, Otte crushed a solo shot well beyond the left field fence as Whitman began to take control.
The duo kept it rolling for the Blues one inning later. Ting drove a pitch up the middle of the infield for a base hit just before Otte cracked a line drive homerun for two more runs and a 7-2 Whitman lead.Â
The Blues officially broke the game open when Mateus Conaway (2 H, 2 R, 3 RBI) tripled in a pair of runs and Bickerton homered to extend the lead to 12-2 through five innings.
The offense was more than enough for Jack Hostetler who picked up the win after allowing two runs on three hits with seven strikeouts in seven complete innings. Charlie Decker was hit with the loss for the Loggers after giving up four runs in two and one-third innings.
The Blues and Loggers conclude their series on Sunday with a single game set for 12:00 p.m.
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