HILO, Hawaii. -- Starting the four-game set on the Big Island against the Vulcans of Hawaii Hilo, Vanguard baseball ended Monday with a split in the doubleheader.  The Lions out-hit the Vulcans 15-8 in game one, but Hilo prevailed 12-8.  However, the Blue and Gold held firm in the nightcap, putting up two runs in the sixth to conquer UHH 3-1.  VU went to 5-16 overall and 2-13 in Pacific West Conference play, while the Vulcans went to 7-9, 6-6.
 
What Happened?  Joshua Sur took a two-out walk in the first to begin a small VU rally, and he got to second on a wild pitch.  That proved key, as a single to right field by Tristan Gallegos allowed Sur to touch home and give Vanguard a 1-0 lead for Jake Hiner.  However, the Vulcans smacked two singles and a double to advance to a 3-1 edge after one inning.
 
After a quiet second, the Blue and Gold leveled the score, with a two-out single by Jaxson Davis extending the frame.  That brought Sur to the plate, and he guessed correctly on the first pitch and bombed a home run to make it 3-3.  Hiner kept the Vulcans from getting aboard in the bottom of the third, and the Lions returned to the lead in the fourth.  Three singles in a row from Colton Perez, Nathan Hellein, and Brian Paymard allowed Perez to touch the plate, as Vanguard inched ahead 4-3.
 
The Vulcans tied the ball game in the bottom of the inning, with a sacrifice fly doing the deed, as the score was tied 4-4 entering the seventh.  After getting one out, a walk and a hit batter brought an end to Hiner's outing, as he concluded with six strikeouts after throwing 109 pitches.  Unfortunately, the batter he walked would come home to score on a three-run homer a couple of batters later, as UHH jumped ahead 7-4.
 
Vanguard clawed a run back in the eighth, with a Bennett Vondrak single pushing Angel Perez home to cut the gap to 7-5.  However, Hilo pocketed five runs in the bottom of the eighth to secure the lead at 12-5.  The Blue and Gold rallied for three runs in the top of the ninth, beginning with a Davis walk and a Sur single.  Gallegos took a walk to load up the bases, and a single by Angel Perez into left field made it 12-6.  Colton Perez earned an RBI on a walk, and Vondrak got one by getting hit by a pitch.  Yet that was all the Lions could muster, as UHH won 12-8.
 
VU had 15 hits but four errors, while UHH had eight hits and no mistakes.  The Lions left 11 runners on the base paths to the Vulcans' nine.  Hiner took the loss to drop to 1-5, with Mitch Hunter, Trevor Steele, and Dylan Scott going the final few innings.  Sur had a 3-for-4 day to pace the lineup, while his two RBI ended tied with Vondrak.  Gallegos, Angel Perez, Colton Perez, Hellein, and Paymard all had two hits.
 
Game 2
Caden Byers was selected to start game two for the Blue and Gold, and he was gifted a lead in the top of the second.  Angel Perez opened the stanza with a single, followed by a Hellein single and a walk to Tyler Shigenaka.  James Derflinger put down a bunt with the bases loaded and he got the squeeze play to work, as Perez was able to slide in safely as UHH tagged out Derflinger.  After checking the Vulcans in the first two innings, Byers hit a batter and then gave up three walks to see the hosts knot the score at 1-1.
 
Hawaii Hilo threatened in the bottom of the fifth, as the Vulcans loaded up the bases and chased Byers, who was replaced by Dylan Henson.  In a bind, Henson got a grounder to retire the side to keep the scored tied at 1-all.  Fortunately, the Blue and Gold surfed into the lead in the top of the sixth to end the losing streak.  Gallegos began the sixth with a triple to the right-field fence, and a Paymard double easily scored Gallegos.  Ahead 2-1, Perez dropped a sacrifice bunt to push Paymard to third, and Chase Easter-Hairston came in to run for Paymard.  Hellein put a ball on the ground towards third, but the speed of Easter-Hairston forced UHH to get the sure out, as the speedster cashed in the final run of the game.
 
Protecting a 3-1 edge, Henson gave up only one single over the final two frames to pick up the win.  Vanguard had seven hits and left five on the base paths, while Hilo had six hits and nine runners stranded.  Byers had four Ks and threw 127 pitches, while Henson fanned two and improved to 1-3.  Gallegos went 3-for-3 to lead the lineup.
 
What's Next?  Another late night in California, as VU plays at 6:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m. here again today.