For the second time in as many weekends, baseball won and lost one game each of a doubleheader to split a series against a PacWest opponent. The Eagles beat the Academy of Art University Urban Knights 7-5 in their first contest on March 25 but got shut out in the second game, losing 6-0. Biola has now gone 4-4 over their last eight games and holds a one-game lead over California Baptist University for third place in the conference.
BIG FOURTH INNING PROPELS EAGLES
Art U drew first blood against senior starting pitcher Wyatt Haccou, getting a two-run double off him in the opening frame. The score remained 2-0 in favor of the Urban Knights until the Eagles finally broke through in the bottom of the fourth. Freshman designated hitter Ryan Gallegos tied the game with a two-run single, then scored the go-ahead run on an error. Senior catcher River Fawley added an RBI single and freshman outfielder Brandon Cody scored on a wild pitch, giving the Eagles a 5-2 lead. The Urban Knights got a run back against Haccou in the top of the fifth, but Biola came right back in the bottom half, adding two more on an RBI double from junior outfielder Jerron Largusa and a sacrifice fly from Gallegos.
Haccou finished after five innings, having given up three runs on six hits along with two walks and two strikeouts. Junior relief pitcher Joey Leavitt allowed Art U to cut their deficit in half by scoring two runs in the seventh, but got out of the inning without any further damage. That allowed manager Jay Sullenger to turn to the back of his bullpen, and sophomore reliever Josh Ludeman and senior cloer Daniel Jang each threw a scoreless inning to end the game.
BIOLA’S BATS BEWILDERED ON BACK END
The Urban Knights again jumped on the scoreboard early in game two, as junior starter Dallas Burk issued a two-run home run in the first inning. A balk in the second would make it 3-0 in favor of Art U. Burk would not make it out of the fifth, allowing three more runs to effectively put the seven-inning game out of reach.
This time, the Eagles’ offense had no help for their starter. Biola threatened with multiple baserunners in the second, fifth and sixth innings but could never score, eventually falling 6-0 in the shortened affair.
The Eagles now sit at 18-8 on the season and 10-6 in PacWest play. They are three games behind second-place Point Loma Nazarene University, who comes to Biola for a four-game series starting on March 29 at 3 p.m.
