CLAREMONT, Calif.—A day after giving up 20 runs in seven innings to the host Sagehens, Lewis & Clark College baseball used strong pitching all afternoon, to earn a near doubleheader sweep of host #22/23 Pomona-Pitzer College on Saturday afternoon. 
 
THE BASICS
#22/23 Pomona-Pitzer 4, Lewis & Clark 3
Lewis & Clark 5, #22/23 Pomona-Pitzer 4
(Lewis & Clark 11-12)
(Pomona-Pitzer 16-10) 

HOW IT HAPPENED
 
Both games saw the winning team score two runs in the ninth inning to earn a comeback victory and ultimately a split on Saturday. The Pioneers were one out away from winning game one, before Pomona-Pitzer tied the game on an error and hit a walk-off two batters later. Lewis & Clark scored three runs in their final two at-bats to earn a comeback win in game three and pick up their first win of the season over a nationally-ranked squad. 
 
Senior Luke Ritter, junior Nate Kerr, sophomore Caden Hodina and first year Justin Frohn combined to limit the Sagehens to just eight runs (six earned) across 18 innings on Saturday. 
 
GAME ONE RECAP 
 
Ritter continued his strong recent form and Ritter and Kerr nearly combined for their third-consecutive win, before a late Pomona-Pitzer rally cost the Pioneers. 
 
Ritter went a season-high seven innings and scattered four hits, two walks, two hit by pitches and two runs. He added four strikeouts. 
 
Kerr was the tough-luck loser. He threw the final 1.2 innings and allowed three hits, a walk and two unearned runs. 
 
The Pioneers made the most of their four hits and four walks in the contest. Senior Justin Cavagnaro went 1-3 with a double, two RBI and a walk. Sophomore Gavin Mangano added a hit, a run scored, an RBI and a stolen base. Sophomore Bret Potter posted two walks. 
 
Pomona-Pitzer took a 1-0 lead in the first. The leadoff hitter singled and they put two runners on with a one-out hit by pitch. After a double steal, Greg Pierantoni drove in the opening run with an RBI groundout. 
 
The Pioneers put together their biggest inning of the day in the top of the third. With two down, Brandon Gonzaga singled to center and then raced to third on a failed pickoff throw. Mangano tied the game with an RBI single. After a second error allowed Michael Aikawa to reach, Cavagnaro drove in both runners with a two-run double to right-center. 
 
Ritter retired nine in a row before a two-out hit by pitch in the bottom of the fifth. JC Ng made the Pioneers pay with an RBI triple to cut the Lewis & Clark lead to 3-2. 
 
The score would stay that way until the ninth as Ritter stranded a runner at third in both the fifth and sixth innings and left two on in the seventh. Lewis & Clark turned an inning-ending double play in the eighth inning to set up an exciting ninth inning. 
 
Tanner DeGrazia led off with a single and was pinch ran for. The Sagehens moved the pinch runner to third with two down on a sac bunt and ground out. The hosts tied the game on an infield error and Jack Gold walked it off with an RBI double. 
 
GAME TWO RECAP 
 
Lewis & Clark jumped out to another early lead but found themselves playing the role of the spoiler late, as they scored three runs in the final two innings to earn the split. 
 
Hodina went the opening 4.2 innings in game one and limited the hosts to five hits, five walks and two earned runs. He added five strikeouts. Frohn picked up his first collegiate win in his longest collegiate outing. The first year went 4.1 innings and scattered five hits, two walks and two runs. Frohn posted two strikeouts. 
 
First year Will Michelman was the only Pioneer with a multiple hit game in either contest, as he went 2-4 with a run scored. Gonzga added a double, an RBI, a stolen base and a pair of walks. Cavagnaro chipped in three walks of his own and the game-winning run. 
 
Lewis & Clark took advantage of some early wildness for the Sagehens to take a 1-0 lead in the second. Michelman ripped a one-out double. With two down, Eli Steinhaus and Gonzaga worked back-to-back walks to load the bases. Michelman raced home on a wild pitch to open the scoring. 
 
The Pioneers added another run in the fourth. Potter started the inning with a single and stole second. He easily scored on a Gonzaga RBI double through the left-side. 
 
After holding the Sagehens offense at bay through the first three innings, Pomona-Pitzer finally got to Hodina in the fourth. Cooper Berry hit the first of three Sagehens home runs with a leadoff home run. 
 
Gold added a solo shot with one out in the fifth to make it 2-2. The Sagehens had runners at first and second with two outs, when the Pioneers turned the ball over to Frohn. He retired the first batter he faced with a fly out to keep it 2-2. 
 
Lateef Wakil made it 4-2 Pomona-Pitzer in the sixth when he connected on a two-run homer. 
 
After being held scoreless for three inning, Lewis & Clark scratched across a run in the eighth. Brennen Davis walked, stole second and moved to third on a Michelman single. Potter cut the deficit to 4-3 with a sac fly to right. The Pioneers put runners on second and third with two down but the Sagehens reliever came through with a strikeout to keep the hosts in the lead. 
 
Lewis & Clark grabbed the lead in the ninth despite only recording one hit. Aikawa notched that hit with a leadoff single. He took second on a wild pitch and third on a Cavagnaro walk where the ball went to the backstop on ball four. Aikawa came in to score the tying run on a third wild pitch – which also moved Cavagnaro to second. Will Heron worked a walk to put runners at first and second and forced a pitching change. Davis moved both runners up with a sac bunt and the Sagehens intentionally walked Michelman to load the bases. The fourth wild pitch of the inning allowed Cavagnaro to race home with the go-ahead run. Potter would walk to load the bases, but the Sagehens retired the next two batters to keep the game 4-3. 
 
Pomona-Pitzer wouldn't go down without a fight. Pierantoni led off the inning with a single. Frohn retired the next two batters but a single and a hit by pitch loaded the bases. Frohn induced a grounder up the middle that Gonzaga fielded and tagged second base to end the game. 
 
BY THE NUMBERS

• The Pioneers earned their first win over a nationally-ranked squad since defeating #7 Birmingham-Southern College in their first game of the 2023 NCAA DIII Regional Tournament on May 19, 2023.
• Frohn has thrown 2.2 innings or more in each of his first four collegiate appearances. He has posted a 2.63 ERA across his first 13.2 innings pitched. 
• In his last three outings, Ritter has allowed six earned runs in 19 innings pitched (2.84 ERA). It's his best stretch of outings since he gave up five runs in 18 innings from February 11-March 4, 2023. 
• Hodina has made two career starts against Pomona-Pitzer and the Pioneers are 2-0 in those starts. Last year, he held the Sagehens to one run over six innings in his collegiate debut. 
• The Pioneers have given up four earned runs or fewer in five of their past seven outings. 

WHO'S NEXT 
 
The Pioneers will close out the weekend with a single game against Occidental College on Sunday at 11 a.m.