COSTA MESA -- Vanguard completed the Pacific West Conference series against Point Loma baseball today, but the Blue and Gold dropped both games. The Sea Lions won 11-4 and 6-5 to sweep the series and improve to 16-3 overall and 11-0 in PacWest play, while Vanguard dropped to 4-15, 1-12.
What Happened? The Blue and Gold had
Caden Byers on the bump in game one, and he got the first two outs of the matchup, but PLNU got a walk and a home run to plunge ahead 2-0. Yet the offense came alive in the bottom of the second for VU, with
Colton Perez and
Nathan Hellein getting back-to-back singles.
Brian Paymard then smoked a double down the left-field line, scoring Perez to slive the deficit in half. The Sea Lions worked the bases loaded in the top of the third, but Byers got a doubleplay and a fly out to escape with only one run allowed.
Down 3-1, the Lions had another productive attack in the bottom of the fifth, which started with Paymard blasting a double down the right-field line.
Tyler Shigenaka put a single past the PLNU shortstop, and a
Jaxson Davis single brought Paymard safely to the plate. Unfortunately, VU could not generate another run in the frame despite loading up the bases.
The Sea Lions then raced away, scoring three in the top of the sixth, four in the seventh, and one in the ninth to secure an 11-4 victory. Yet there were some smart rebuttals by the Lions, including Paymard's moon shot in the bottom of the sixth. VU's run in the bottom of the eighth came after
Angel Perez took a leadoff walk, and
Chase Easter-Hairston pinch ran for him. The speedster got to second on a
James Derflinger walk and then to third on a flyout. Hellein skied a fly ball to left deep enough score Easter-Hairston, though the Lions were held in check from there.
PLNU had 11 runs on 11 hits while leaving nine runners aboard. Vanguard had four runs on eight hits, four errors, and also left nine aboard. Paymard went 3-for-4 with two RBI to lead the VU lineup. Byers dropped to 0-2 and had three Ks in just over five innings of work.
Dylan Scott and
Christopher Ceballos worked the remained of the game for Vanguard.
Game 2
The starters put some pace and purpose into the first two frames, as
Seth Wrightstone and Devin Norton each set the lineups down in quick order. But a difference in game four of the series compared to the others was VU scoring first. Hellein led off with a single to center field and Davis took a walk, with
Joshua Sur lining a single to center to collect the RBI.
However, three hits and an error allowed PLNU to flip ahead 4-1, and a brace of runs by the visitors in the top of the fifth put the Sea Lions ahead 6-1. But one shot brought things back into range for the Blue and Gold, as Shigenaka led off by getting hit by a pitch. Davis was also beaned, and Sur got a pitch down the pipe, and he clobbered it over the left-field fence to cut the gap to 6-4.
Running out of time, the Lions put on the rally caps in the bottom of the seventh, with Sur singling to lead off. He got to second on a wild pitch, and a base knock by
Angel Perez brought Sur across the plate. Derflinger singled with two outs, and a bad Point Loma throw got Perez to third and Derflinger to second.
Tristan Gallegos was used as a pinch hitter and got a big swing on a pitch, but it stayed in the park and PLNU held on for a 6-5 win.
The Sea Lions had six runs on seven hits, two errors, and left seven runners aboard. VU had five runs on 10 hits, one error, and nine runners left on base. Sur was a clean 4-for-4 with four RBI in the twin bill, with Derflinger next at 2-for-4. Wrightstone had one strikeout and dropped to 1-3, with
Shamir Marshall,
Tyler Prystajko, and
Dylan Henson going the rest of the way.
What's Next? The Lions practice the rest of the week before flying to the Big Island for a four-game set against Hawaii Hilo beginning March 9.
