BIRMINGHAM, Ala.—Lewis & Clark College baseball went toe-to-toe with #7/5 Birmingham-Southern College in an elimination game slugfest for the first five innings, before the Panthers used a 7-0 closing run to end the Pioneers 2023 campaign. 

THE BASICS
#7/5 Birmingham-Southern 15, Lewis & Clark 8
(Lewis & Clark 31-14)
(Birmingham-Southern 38-10) 

HOW IT HAPPENED
 
Junior Luke Bass and senior Dylan Moore each came through with two huge plays to help the Pioneers go back-and-forth with the hosts through the first five frames. 
 
With the loss, Lewis & Clark sees one of their most successful seasons in program history come to a close. The Pioneers 31 wins are tied with the 1990 team for the most wins in a single-season. Lewis & Clark also earned their first-ever trips to the Northwest Conference Tournament and NCAA Tournament and won their first-ever NWC Conference Tournament. 
 
Bass finished the contest 2-5 with one run, one home run and four RBI. Moore tacked on a two-run, two-out single and robbed a would-be two-run home run. 
 
Freshman Brandon Gonzaga led the Pioneers with three hits (3-5) and a run scored. Senior Jack Thomson closed out his Pioneers career with three hit by pitches, one intentional walk and three runs scored. Senior Jack Savant (one run) and junior Will Heron each finished with two hits. 
 
Senior Kris Wuelfing kept the Pioneers in the game through the first five innings. He allowed 10 hits and eight earned runs and struck out two in a no-decision. Junior Tyler Shimabukuro, seniors Noah Ferruggia and Kevin Kane and junior Anthony Clerici combined to pitch the final four innings. Ferruggia went two innings with two strikeouts and one run allowed. Kane allowed one run over one inning and Clerici posted a 1-2-3 ninth inning. 
 
After going down 2-0 in the top of the first, the Pioneers responded with two runs of their own. Savant led off with a single and Thomson was hit by a pitch to put two on with no outs. With two down, Heron singled to load the bases and Moore drove a hard grounder through the middle to score Savant and Thomson. 
 
Birmingham-Southern would retake the lead in the top of the second on a solo home run and a sac fly but again the Pioneers would counter with runs of their own. Gonzaga doubled to left center with one out and Thomson was intentionally walked to put two on with two outs. Gonzaga scored to cut the deficit to 4-3 when the Panthers committed one of their six errors on a Brennen Davis ground ball. Bass followed with a single into the right-field corner and the ball was misplayed allowing both Thomson and Davis to score to make it 5-4 Pioneers.
 
The hosts would retake the lead on a two-run homer in the third and stretched their advantage to 8-5 with a two-out rally in the fourth. 
 
That lead would last exactly three batters into the bottom of the fourth. Thomson opened the inning with his second of three hit by pitches and Davis followed with a walk. Bass made the Panthers pay with a moon shot home run deep over the fence in right to tie the game at 8-8. 
 
Birmingham-Southern thought they had retaken the lead in the top of the fifth. With two outs and a runner on second, Andrew Dutton sent a fly ball to the wall in right but Moore reached up over the top of the fence and caught the ball as his glove hit the home run netting behind the fence. 
 
Lewis & Clark put runners on the corners with one out in the bottom of the inning but the Panthers reliever retired the next two batters to keep the Pioneers from grabbing the lead. 
 
Birmingham-Southern grabbed the lead for good in the top of the sixth. With the Pioneers going to the pen, the hosts scored six runs on six hits, two errors, a hit by pitch and a wild pitch. Senior Ian Hancock delivered the big blow of the inning with a two-run homer to make it 10-8. 
 
Lewis & Clark would put five runners on base over their final four at-bats but couldn't come through with another big hit with runners in scoring position. For the game, Lewis & Clark finished the contest with 12 runners left on base. 
 
BY THE NUMBERS

• All of the Pioneers healthy players (28 total) appeared in at least one game this weekend. 
• Thomson finished the Regional 5-10 with seven runs, five RBI, three home runs, three walks and three hit by pitches. He reached base 11 times in 16 trips to the plate. 
• Heron was the only Pioneer to record a hit in all three games this weekend. The sophomore posted four hits in 13 at-bats. 
• Saturday's games were the final contests for Lewis & Clark's 11 graduating seniors: Blake Tellinghusen, Mason Lee, Cristian Panaro, Brayden Nomura, Henry Goodier, Jacob Serafini, Thomson, Ferruggia, Wuelfing, Kane and Moore.  

WHAT'S NEXT 
 
Lewis & Clark expects to return 19 players, including eight starters, for the 2024 season.