After taking the first of their four games at the California Baptist University Lancers on April 5, the Eagles suffered their worst loss of the season on April 6 and could not recover, dropping the next two games as their offense sputtered. CBU leapfrogged the Eagles in the PacWest standings over the three games, and Biola now sits in a fourth place tie with Academy of Art University.
CBU SCORES 23 RUNS AND THAT IS NOT A TYPO
Junior pitcher Devin Sutorius received a starting nod for the second straight weekend in the opening game of the Eagles’ and Lancers’ April 6 doubleheader. The displaced reliever immediately ran into trouble, allowing three runs in the first inning. The Eagles got two of those runs back after loading the bases in the third, but CBU blew the game open with a four-run fifth. The Eagles again came back, however, scoring two each in the sixth and seventh to narrow their deficit to 9-6. However, the Lancers’ offense was just getting started. They scored a whopping 14 runs in two innings against junior relief pitcher Joey Leavitt and freshman reliever Anthony Villegas, running up the score to 23-6 by the time the game ended.
EAGLES OFFENSE STALLS
Senior starting pitcher Wyatt Haccou did a much better job of limiting the damage in the nightcap, as he and redshirt freshman reliever Christian Hammar combined to hold the Lancers to just three runs over the seven-inning game. However, Biola’s bats could not provide enough run support for the duo, going quietly for the most part. Solo home runs by junior outfielder Jerron Largusa and sophomore third baseman Jacob Portaro proved the only offense the Eagles could muster, and they dropped the game 3-2.
The series finale on April 7 followed a similar script. Senior starter Micah Beyer turned in another fantastic outing, allowing two runs on five hits over seven innings while striking out 10. However, the Eagles once again failed to support their pitcher. They scored the first run of the game on an RBI groundout from senior first baseman Colton Worthington, but otherwise went quietly in the 3-1 loss.
The Eagles slip to 21-13 overall and 13-11 in the PacWest with 16 conference games remaining. Their next series will start at Eagles Diamond against Holy Names University on April 12 at 3 p.m.
