GAME ONE
GAME TWO
SPOKANE, Wash. - Lewis & Clark pitcher Alex
St. Pierre held Whitworth to two runs in the teams series opener
against Whitworth, but the Pirates pounded three home runs in the
nightcap to split a Northwest Conference baseball doubleheader on
Saturday afternoon at Merkel Field. The visiting Pioneers took the
first 10-2 and Whitworth won the second game 11-5.
The Pioneers are now 5-10 overall and 4-7 in conference play.
Whitworth is now 5-13 overall, 2-3 in the NWC.
In game one, the Pioneers got their bats going early, grabbing a
7-0 lead after two innings of action. St. Pierre was a force to be
reckoned with on the mound, cruising to his second consecutive
complete game and his third win of the season. The junior lefty
held the Pirates to two runs on eight hits, while not walking a
single batter, allowing only one earned run and striking out five
batters.
Tucker Laurence helped plate the Pioneers first run, hitting a
sacrifice fly in the first inning, sending teammate Michael Ball
home. The Pioneers really got after the Whitworth pitcher in the
second inning of action, scoring six runs, beginning with a two-run
single from senior Sami Morgan. Laurence followed with an RBI
single, while Nate Grisham chipped in an RBI single of his own.
Senior Jim Bray followed suit, knocking in Laurence with a single
down the left side. Sam Holman knocked in the final run of the
inning with a sacrifice fly to right field that sent Grisham home.
The Pirates got on the board in the sixth inning, but the Pios
were quick to respond, scoring two runs in the top of the seventh.
Freshman Gianluca Giarrizzo and Holman each came around to score
the two runs to for the Pios in the seventh.
Whitworth plated one more run in the bottom of the seventh. With
the game already headed toward a Pioneer victory when Laurence hit
his second sacrifice fly in the ninth inning for the Pioneers final
run.
Game two began with the Pioneers scoring a run in the top of the
first inning, with Ball coming around to score on a Grisham single.
A Baffarro run in the top of the third inning put the Pioneers up
2-1, after the Pirates put one on the board in the second inning.
The Bucs managed to take the lead in the bottom of the third
inning and would never relinquish it. A single by Guiseppe Baffaro
in the top of the seventh brought in Holman to pull the Pios within
8-3. The Pirates managed to answer back in the bottom of the
eighth, scoring three runs to take an 11-3 advantage. The Pioneers
closed the gap in the ninth inning with two runs, including an RBI
single by Laurence.
Ball led the Pio offence with five hits and three runs scored.
Laurence finished the day with four runs batted in.
The two sides will complete the three-game series on Sunday with
a game at noon at Merkel Field.
more to follow ...
