HONOLULU, Hawai'i – Trailing by seven runs entering the final two innings, the Vanguard baseball team mounted a furious rally but fell short of the comeback in an 11-10 PacWest loss to Chaminade on Saturday at Les Murakami Stadium.
The Lions were down 11-4 when they scored three runs apiece in the eighth and ninth innings. VU had the bases loaded with one out in its final at-bat, but could not plate the tying or go-ahead runs as Chaminade closer Joseph Perez induced a game-ending ground ball double play.
VU, which entered the series with the best team ERA in the PacWest, has allowed 11 runs to Chaminade in each of the first two games.
The Lions lost despite pounding out a season-high 17 hits. VU's offense continues to produce, having scored seven or more runs in seven of the last 10 contests.
Seven position players recorded multi-hit games, led by Josh Schleichardt with a 3-for-5 performance. He added a pair of RBI. Jaxson Davis went 2-for-5 with a pair of runs scored and four RBI, which included his fourth home run of the season.
Fred Buckson, Colton Perez, Abe Hernandez, Tyler Shigenaka and Jarred Mazzaferro also produced two hits apiece.
Vanguard committed four errors, the most costly of which occurred in the sixth inning as Chaminade scored three times to extend its lead to 11-4. It was unfortunate luck for reliever Kegan Wentz, who gave up the three runs with only one earned.
The Lions have begun their trip to the islands 0-2 and sit at 23-17 overall and 19-15 in the PacWest. Chaminade improved to 17-22 for the season and 15-19 in conference play.
What Happened?: The Lions dented the scoreboard first as Colton Perez's single drove in Fred Buckson, who had doubled with one out in the first.
VU starter Jake Hiner struggled in his first encounter with the Chaminade lineup. He allowed a single and two walks before Andrew Karns drove in two with a single through the left side to give the Silverswords a 2-1 lead. Jackson Dorn made it 3-1 with an infield single that plated Casey Kudell.
The Blue and Gold answered with a three-run third, facilitated by Schleichardt's two-run triple that scored Buckson and Davis. Colton Perez followed with a run-scoring double to give the Lions a 4-3 edge.
But the 'Swords got the runs back and then some, hammering home five runs in the bottom half. Two singles and a walk loaded the bags, and Dorn got plunked by a pitch to bring home one run. Karns scored a second run on a wild pitch.
Hiner got two outs via strikeout, but a balk allowed Dorn to trot home with the fourth run of the inning and a 7-3 lead. Jarin Banis laced a run-scoring single to complete the five-run outburst.
Chaminade starter Mac Elske settled down after allowing four runs through three innings to the Lions, putting zeroes up through the next three.
Mitch Hunter entered in relief of Hiner in the fourth and tossed a scoreless inning. Christopher Ceballos put up a goose egg in the fifth as well.
Wentz became the fourth VU pitcher of the afternoon as he took on the sixth. With one out, he got Cade Fujii to ground to third base, but a throwing error allowed him to advance to second. Kudell took full advantage with an RBI double in the next at-bat, and moved to third on a wild pitch. Karns stroked an RBI single to increase the Chaminade lead to 10-4. Ace Perry's RBI groundout plated Karns for the second unearned run of the inning.
Reyn Kapua pitched a scoreless seventh for the 'Swords, but ran into trouble in the eighth. Davis unloaded on a three-run home run to right to cut the deficit to 11-7.
Zach Saufl and Maxwell Montplaisir held the 'Swords offense down in the seventh and eighth innings.
In the ninth, Rhyn Chambers took the hill for Chaminade and immediately hit Noah Madole with a pitch. Christopher Famolaro singled to put two runners on, and Tristan Gallegos walked to load the bases.
The Lions kept churning out solid at-bats as Shigenaka got drilled to bring in Madole for the first run of the inning. Mazzaferro followed with an RBI single as the Lions continued playing station to station. An RBI ground out from Davis scored Gallegos as the Blue and Gold cut the deficit to 11-10.
Buckson then got beaned – VU's fourth hit by pitch of the game – to reload the bases. Unfortunately, Schleichardt grounded into a game-ending 4-6-3 double play as Perez secured his sixth save in the three hour and three minute affair.
Hiner earned the loss to fall to 5-3. Elske notched the win to move to 3-1.
What's Next?: The Lions conclude their four-game series with Chaminade with a doubleheader on Sunday. First pitch of game one is slated for 4:00 p.m. (PT).
