BOX SCORE
SPOKANE, Wash. – The Lewis & Clark
baseball team held an early lead on the Whitworth Pirates on Sunday
afternoon in game three of the Northwest Conference series, but the
Pirates found a way to fight back to earn a 10-8 victory to take
the series from the Pios at Merkel Field.
The Pioneers fall to 5-11 on the year and 4-8 in NWC action. The
Pirates improved to 6-13 overall and 3-3 conference.
Michael Ball and the Pioneers scored a run in the first inning
of play, but the Pirates managed to come back in their half of the
inning, taking a 4-1 advantage.
The Pios rallied for seven runs in the third inning, earning an
8-4 lead, while knocking out the Pirates starting pitcher. The
inning began with an RBI single from Tucker Laurence, knocking in
Sami Morgan. Senior Jim Bray really got the scoring going moments
later, hitting a three-run home run to left field, scoring Laurence
and Eliot Smith. The Pioneers continued finding the gaps, playing
small ball and moving the runners around the bases. Both Michael
Ball and Geoff Wertz helped the scoring continue, each hitting RBI
singles in the rally.
Down 8-4, the Pirates began to find their groove, slowly
chipping away at the Pio lead. Whitworth posted a run in the fourth
inning to pull within three runs, before adding two unearned runs
in the fifth putting the Pio advantage at just one run. Things only
continued to go the Pirates way when they posted three runs in the
sixth inning to jump to a 10-8 lead.
The Pioneers would try to make a comeback of their own, but
would not be successful.
Bray's homerun was his second of the season, while Smith
went 3-5 with a run scored and an RBI. Ball and Parker Dane both
had a pair of hits for the Pios.
The Pioneers return to action on March 23 in a non-conference
road trip to Corban at noon.
