The University of Redlands baseball team took on Endicott College (MA) on a beautiful, Monday afternoon at The Yard. The Bulldogs took an early lead with four runs in the first and never looked back in the 13-2 routing of the Gulls.
Senior pitcher Noah Jones (San Bernardino, CA) was handed the pearl for the non-conference game. Jones pitched a solid first inning to put his team on offense.
The Maroon and Gray took advantage of opportunity by scoring four runs on one hit, one sacrifice bunt, and a costly Gull error. With one on and two outs, senior right fielder Jordan Babbitt (Highland, CA) muscled a home run over the right-field fence for Redlands' 4-0 lead.
Although both pitchers threw out of the stretch, neither team added any runs in the second or third innings.
With first-year left fielder Cal Bridges (Fremont, CA) on third, senior center fielder Kyle Kabeary (Indio, CA) raked a double to left center to plate Bridges for a 5-0 Bulldog advantage.
After Endicott jumped on the board in the sixth inning on two hits and a Bulldog slip-up, first-year pitcher Nick Hammel (San Diego, CA) was called in to relieve Jones and pitched for the ground ball for the last out to limit the damage.
Kabeary and senior second baseman Will Hall (Seattle, WA) laid down back-to-back bunts for base hits to kick off the bottom of the seventh. With speed on the base paths, they subsequently executed the successful double steal for runners on second and third with no outs. Senior third baseman Brendan Gardiner (Mission Viejo, CA) laced a single to right center for two RBI. Senior catcher Rainier Aguilar (San Bernardino, CA) followed suit with a single before Redlands moved runners to second and third on a sacrifice bunt. With one out, junior shortstop Aaron Singh (Anaheim, CA) drove in both runs with a two-bagger to left field. Now at the end of the seventh, Redlands held a sizable, 9-1 lead.
Sophomore designated hitter Austin Williams (Redlands, CA) took the mound in the eighth and allowed one run on one hit. His defense backed him up by recording a double play and a groundout to close out the half inning with his team still in front at 9-2.
Junior catcher Bart In den Kleef (Oosterhout, Netherlands) stepped up as a pinch hitter with the bases loaded in the bottom of the eighth. He remained calm at the dish and smoked a double down the left-field line for two RBI. After an out, Singh repeated this feat with a hard-hit single to the same location, which led to a Gull error and two runs for the 13-2 Redlands lead.
First-year hurler Justin Yang (Fountain Valley, CA) was called in to close out the game. He threw a groundout, strikeout, and pop out to end the ninth with an awesome 13-2 victory.
Overall, Gardiner went 2-for-4, knocked three RBI, and scored three runs. Babbitt also had a good day at the plate by going 2-for-3, including a home run and two RBI. Finally, Singh impressed with two hits for a team-leading five RBI.
Redlands (14-4) continues its non-conference schedule with a single game against Dickinson College (PA) on Wednesday, March 14, at 3 p.m.
