SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - The fourth-ranked Vanguard University Baseball team (23-5, 11-3) dropped the first two games of a highly anticipated four-game series against (13) Westmont College (16-11, 9-5) by scores of 4-6 and 4-10. This was the first time this year that the Lions had suffered back-to-back losses, as the Warrior offense looked explosive to start the series.
What Happened?
Game One: After setting the school record with RBI in a single game last series, Omar Ortiz continued his tear as he started the scoring with a solo shot, his seventh of the year, to lead off the second inning. Two batters later, Matt Land would knock a homer to kick off a two-out rally. Two consecutive singles by Chad Sutton and Luke Arias would put two on for Landon Riker who slapped a single to left-center to give the Lions a 3-0 lead.
The Warriors put two runners in scoring position with no outs in the bottom of the third and a fielder's choice would score one and a single by Alex Stufft would bring another run as Westmont cut their deficit down to one. The Lions responded in the top of the fourth as Land was hit by a pitch and Sutton knocked a single through the right side. An error by the pitcher would score Land as the Pride pushed the lead back to two.
WC would tie the game up with an RBI double in the bottom of the sixth and a leadoff home run in the bottom of the seventh. With the momentum firmly on their side, the Warriors would put two more on the board in the inning courtesy of a fielder's choice and an RBI double to take a 6-4 lead. Aki Buckson saved another run to end the inning, showing off his cannon of an arm as a Westmont base runner tried to stretch a single into a run from second base. The Warriors would hold the Lions in check the rest of the way as they came away with a win in game one.
Game Two: This time Westmont would get out in front as John Jensen doubled to lead off the bottom of the first and scored on a fielder's choice after advancing to third on a wild pitch. Omar Ortiz would counter with a solo shot in the top of the second, his second of the day, and eighth of the year. The Pride would pull ahead in the top of the third as Sutton had a leadoff single and Riker drew a walk. Buckson would bring home one with an RBI single and a balk would bring home another after a singe by Joe Johnson loaded the bases as the Lions took a 3-1 lead.
Aki Buckson would hit his eighth home run of the year in the top of the fifth to push the lead to three, but the Warriors came back with a vengeance as they loaded the bases in the bottom of the frame. Simon Reid would hit a grand slam to clear the bases and Daniel Netz would hit an RBI single to left-center as Westmont went 4-1 down to 5-4 up. The home team would tack on four more runs in the bottom of the sixth thanks to a couple of errors and RBI singles and shut down the Lions in the top of the seventh to earn a 10-4 victory.
Why It's Important? This was the first time this year that the Lions had suffered back-to-back losses and will eventually be the first time that the Lions would drop more than one game in a series. Vanguard will have a chance to redeem themselves tomorrow as they look to create some more separation at the top of the conference.
Top Performers: Ortiz went 3-7 on the day with two home runs and two RBI while Sutton also went 3-7 with two runs. Aki Buckson went 2-4 in game two with 2 RBI and a home run, while Matt Land went 2-3 with a homer in game one.
What They Said: "We didn't play complete baseball today and they capitalized on our mistakes," said Head Coach Rob Pegg. We are looking forward to tomorrow's opportunities to improve.
What's Next: Saturday, March 20th at 11:00 a.m. at Westmont College for games three and four of the series.
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