Junior Mike Kurtz slams down one of two dunks of the night during the game vs. Vanguard last Saturday night. | Tomber Su/THE CHIMES
A player continuing a perfect hitting streak. An exciting win over a top-10 team. Two games without scoring a point. A plethora of broken records. A significant player injured.
It was a hectic weekend to say the least. Let’s take a look at the past week’s biggest stories.
Basketball
– Men’s basketball took an early lead against Vanguard University at Chase Gymnasium on Saturday night and never looked back. The Eagles stumbled in the final minutes but held on to hand the Lions their first conference loss.
– Senior forward Andre Murillo went down midway through the second half. Murillo was helped into the locker room and later returned to the court with his ankle wrapped and on crutches.
Softball
– Softball continued their perfect start to 2013 with a win over No. 13 College of Idaho, Friday morning.
– Junior second baseman Ashley Spadt continued her perfect hitting streak, going 3-3 against Idaho. Spadt has now hit safely in all of her last eight at bats, raising her season batting average to .667.
Tennis
– Despite snagging a win in their first match, men’s tennis dropped both weekend matches by a score of 9-0. On Saturday versus No. 4 Westmont, all six of the singles matches were swept in two sets.
Track
– Senior Mark Opena set a school record in the 60m hurdles, winning the event at the Westmont Sunshine Indoor Open.
– Sophomore Anika Gasner broke a school record set by her sister in the 1000m, earning a NAIA qualifying time. Senior Alexandra Sciarra, sophomore Kellian Hunt and freshman Lyndee Dawson also qualified for nationals.
– Senior Jordan Smith won the high jump and placed second in the 200m and the long jump.
Baseball
– Baseball got off to a great start against Arizona Christian, winning Friday afternoon 5-3. The Firestorm responded with a 5-3 win Saturday morning and then shutout Biola to close the series with a 1-0 win.
– Sophomore pitcher Eric Diomartich responded from two combined 10-run performances with a solid outing Saturday afternoon. Diomartich pitched eight innings of shutout ball, giving up only five hits and striking out nine. He got the no decision in the Eagles 1-0 loss due to a lack of offensive production.
Biola has a full slate of games ahead this week. With post-season rapidly approaching for both basketball teams as well as swimming, this is a huge week to establish who they are in the Golden State Athletic Conference and on the national level.
