CLAREMONT, Calif. -- The Lewis & Clark Pioneers scored three runs in the top half of the eighth inning to take a lead, but the Claremont M-S Stags plated two in the bottom half to move ahead for a 4-3 win in Saturday's doubleheader finale at Arce Field. 

Justin Katona had a double, one of five Pios with hits in the game. Michael Contreras had an RBI single in the eighth. Brandon Rho's home run in the bottom of the eighth put CMS back on top.

Dominic Monozon pitched 6 2/3 innings, allowed two runs on five hits and struck out five.

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Key Moments

The Stags took a 2-0 lead out of the fourth inning, while the Pioneers had only one hit and a baserunner from a CMS error through their first four innings. 

Following three more 1-2-3 innings, the Pioneers got going in the eighth with a leadoff walk by Dylan Moore. Katona's double moved Moore to third, and the Stags pulled starter Brandon Mitchell. He allowed just two hits with 14 strikeouts. With two outs, Contreras singled in Moore, stole second and then scored when Jacob Serafini reached on an error to give the Pios a 3-2 lead.

"Really tough way to lose game two," Pios head coach Matt Kosderka said. "We didn't make any adjustments early against a really good pitcher and struggled to get anything going. But I loved seeing our guys make a game of it in the end and give us a chance to win."

Sammy Benbow and Moore gave the Pios two baserunners in the top of the ninth before the Stags earned the final two outs. 

Game 1

The Lewis & Clark Pioneers allowed 13 hits and committed two errors in a 12-0 loss to open a doubleheader against the Claremont M-S Stags on Saturday at Arce Field. 

Justin Katona, Justin Bailey and Blake Tellinghusen, the 7-9 hitters, each had a hit, as did Zack Kon. Bailey also stole a base in his first collegiate game. 

Freshman Brayden Nomura (0-1) started the game and went 2 1/3 innings, allowed four hits and three earned runs. Cristian Panaro and Kris Wuelfing also made their first collegiate appearances, while Sean Vanderaa pitched for the second straight day.

Key Moments

Trailing 1-0, the Pioneers stranded two runners in the top of the third. Lewis & Clark (0-3) had runners on the corners with one out when Bailey walked, stole second and advanced to third on Tellinghusen's single. 

In the CMS half of the inning, the Stags used a double and two walks to score four runs. In the fifth, a single, double, wild pitch and balk scored runs for the home team.

The Pios had one more moment in the eighth when Bailey led off with a single and Tellinghusen walked. Both were stranded.

"We threw four freshmen and had trouble executing pitches," Kosderka said. "Any time you walk that many against a good team, you're not going to give yourself a chance to win." 

Lewis & Clark walked eight in the game.

Deeper Look

• The hits by Bailey and Tellinghusen were the first of their collegiate careers
• Wuelfing didn't give up a walk over 2 2/3 innings, and Vanderaa struck out one without allowing a hit in the ninth
• In the first game, Lewis & Clark's top six hitters went a combined 1 for 19 with Kon's the only hit
• Zach Clarke and William DeForest had three hits apiece for CMS in the opener
• The Pioneers turned two double plays in Saturday's finale
• Katona's double is the 10th of his career; his first ever also came in a doubleheader with CMS during his sophomore season

Looking Ahead

Lewis & Clark wraps up its southern California trip against Whittier on Sunday.