The University of Redlands baseball squad swung a mighty stick against the Caltech Beavers in Pasadena during Friday's opening game of a three-game Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) series. The Bulldogs banged out 15 hits en route to a 13-0 tromping of the Beavers.
The Bulldogs wasted no time jumping on the board by tossing up a seven-spot in the opening frame, with six different Bulldogs recording an RBI. Senior right-fielder Connor Hancock (Burbank, CA) kicked off the scoring spree with a sacrifice fly to center to bring home sophomore second baseman Christopher Scalisi (Woodland Hills, CA). Junior left-fielder Mitch Samson (Orangevale, CA), senior catcher Sean McMillan (Redwood City, CA), and junior designated hitter Tyler Shreve (Redlands, CA) each notched RBI-singles to follow Hancock's lead.
Scalisi and senior shortstop Jordan Dresner (Etiwanda, CA) dug in for their second at-bats of the inning and successfully connected on RBI-singles of their own to give the Bulldogs an early 7-0 advantage.
The Maroon and Gray tacked on six more runs over the following six innings while utilizing most of its bench. Freshman right-fielder Kyle Kabeary (Indio, CA) entered into the game in the third frame and subsequently drove a a single to left field in the fourth inning and later came around to score via wild pitch.
Freshman Ian Chavez (Carlsbad, CA) also made the most of his playing time by driving home two RBI in the top of the fifth, scoring junior first baseman John Keane (Clayton, CA) and junior center-fielder Nathan Bowker (Edmond, OK). Senior utility player Christian Gurrola (Torrance, CA) tallied an RBI in the top of the seventh to cap off the scoring for the Bulldogs, as he launched a sac-fly to center that plated Bowker.
Junior hurler Kevin Stevens (Highland, CA) was tossed the pearl for the opening game of the series and was on point, holding the Beavers scoreless through three innings while fanning two batters. Senior Josh Makler (Portland, OR) took over in the fourth inning and mirrored Stevens' performance by blanking the home team through three innings of work while sending six batters back to the dugout on a strikeout. Freshman reliever Rainier Aguilar (San Bernardino, CA) came in for the final inning and slammed the door on the opponents, resulting in the Bulldogs' 13-0 win.
Scalisi, Dresner, Samson, McMillan, and Hancock combined for a perfect 8-for-8 at the plate with seven RBI and six runs scored.
Kabeary recorded his first collegiate base-knock with a single to lead off the fourth inning. Chavez collected his second and third hit of the season while recording a 2-for-3 day at the plate.
The Bulldogs (18-8, 11-8 SCIAC) complete the three-game series against the Beavers (2-23, 0-16 SCIAC) in a doubleheader at the Yard on Saturday, April 4. First pitch is set for 11 a.m.