While hosting NAIA opponent La Sierra University on Sunday at The Yard, the University of Redlands baseball team split with the Golden Eagles, dropping the opener, 4-8, while winning the nightcap, 7-4. Solid pitching from junior Josh Makler (Portland, OR) in game two led the Bulldogs to the non-conference triumph as the team prepares to finish the season strong with only Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) contests remaining.
In the opener, the Bulldog bats did not heat up until the latter parts of the game, and by that point, it was too late. Redlands scored a run in each of the last four innings, but La Sierra registered a couple of three-run frames late in the game as well to extend its advantage and secure the victory.
For the Maroon and Gray, junior right-fielder Connor Hancock (Burbank, CA) led the way at the plate during the opener, racking up three hits and scoring one run. A trio of Bulldogs notched two-hit performances, with freshman second baseman Christopher Scalisi (Woodland Hills, CA), senior center-fielder Alex Scheiwe (Encinitas, CA), and senior designated hitter Max Hardman (Encinitas, CA) tallying a pair of hits each.
In a pre-determined seven-inning nightcap, Makler cruised through the first frame before stumbling a bit in the second inning and giving up two runs. He finished strong from there on out, however, surrendering just one more run in the sixth. During his six-inning performance, he scattered eight hits and struck out five Golden Eagle batters in his fifth win of the campaign.
After going down 0-2 in the top of the second frame, the U of R responded at the plate with a pair of runs in the bottom half of the inning, and senior catcher Joe Bell (Bakersfield, CA) provided the big-time hit for the Maroon and Gray during the second. With sophomore third baseman Mark Tumlinson (Anaheim, CA) on at first base after a single up the middle, Bell stepped up to the plate and blasted an RBI triple into the right-centerfield gap, scoring Tumlinson all the way from first base. Bell eventually came in to tie the game on a wild pitch.
The Bulldog bats then exploded for a five-spot in the fourth frame, giving Makler some cushion on the mound. In the big inning, Hancock laced another RBI triple for Redlands, this one going to left-centerfield and scoring two Bulldogs. Scalisi also notched an RBI in the frame, while freshman shortstop Christian Conci (San Mateo, CA) and junior left-fielder Christian Gurrola (Torrance, CA) recorded RBI for the U of R as well.
That would be more than enough for Redlands, as La Sierra could not come back from the deficit. Sophomore pitcher Kevin Hindes (Upland, CA) finished the game on the mound for Redlands and did not allow a hit while surrendering an unearned run.
At the dish in game two, Tumlinson led the way with three hits and two runs scored, while Hancock provided the Bulldogs with two hits and a team-best two RBI.
Redlands (9-16, 8-7 SCIAC) returns to the diamond on Friday, March 28, when it travels to Chapman University (14-8, 10-5 SCIAC) for the first contest of a pivotal three-game conference stint with the Panthers. The Bulldogs then return home next Saturday, March 29, and host Chapman in a doubleheader at The Yard. First pitch on Friday is scheduled for 3 p.m. and the first pitch of the doubleheader on Saturday is set for 11 a.m.
