PHOENIX, Ariz. — Hungry for a win after last weekend's Golden State Athletic Conference series, No. 24-ranked Vanguard University opened this weekend's series against Arizona Christian University with a win. The Lions toppled ACU with a score of 3-1, and Jordan Dreibelbis (SR/Las Vegas, NV) went the distance for the Pride, pitching all nine innings. Assistant coach Mike Thompson said Dreibelbis set the tone of the day. "He did a great job of setting there tempo and getting outs. Offensively, ACU's starter did a great job and we were able to capitalize on timely runs with two outs." Dreibelbis threw seven strikeouts and walked no batters on the day, and gave up nine hits and one run on 37 batters faced.

Vanguard's offense came alive in the third inning starting off with two free bases. Josh Weeks (SO/Murrieta, CA) was walked and Shane Elias-Calles (SR/Mission Viejo, CA) was hit by a pitch. Michael Fuchs (SR/Irvine, CA) got things moving with a single through the right side, and Weeks bolted home. On a wild pitch, Fuchs stole second and Elias-Calles stole home. Lucas Martinez (SR/Fairfax, VA) hit a RBI single to right field, causing Fuchs to score the final run of the day. A solid performance from Dreibelbis kept the Firestorm quiet until they managed to break through the barrier in the seventh with a RBI double. Dreibelbis and the Lions defense did not let the run shake them, however as they kept grinding and put the game away. Vanguard logged seven hits on the day and two errors. Fuchs went 3-for-4 on the day while Joe Johnson (FR/Medford, OR), Elias-Calles, Weeks and Martinez each logged a hit.

Next Game: Saturday, March 16th against Arizona Christian University at 11:00 a.m. (DH)

-GOLD PRIDE-