The No. 16/24 University of Redlands baseball team made the short trip to Pasadena on Friday for a Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) showdown against the Caltech Beavers. With a career-high 12 strikeouts, senior pitcher Felix Minjarez (Riverside, CA) threw a gem, as the Bulldogs returned home with an 11-0 victory.
Although the Beavers mustered two hits in the second inning, Minjarez settled into a nice rhythm and retired the side in order in five of his eight total frames.
The Bulldogs built an early 3-0 lead through the fourth stanza by taking advantage of Caltech's errors and wild pitches. Redlands stretched that to six with a productive fifth inning that included RBI from junior first baseman Brendan Moore (Murrieta, CA) and senior right fielder Jordan Babbitt (Highland, CA). In addition, senior third baseman Brendan Gardiner (Mission Viejo, CA) came home on another wild pitch.
The Bulldogs continued to put up runs, scoring once in the sixth and again in the eighth before gaining a three-spot in the ninth. With two outs in the sixth, senior catcher Rainier Aguilar (San Bernardino, CA) connected on a long single to center field that allowed first-year left fielder Jon Pacheco (Moreno Valley, CA) to touch home. After an RBI-single in the eighth, Gardiner added a double for another run to finish his solid day at the plate with a 3-for-6 showing. In addition, senior second baseman Will Hall (Seattle, WA) was credited with two RBI off a single with two runners on in the ninth.
Minjarez finished the eighth inning with his 12th strikeout for a new career high before first-year pitcher Nick Hammel (San Diego, CA) closed out the final frame.
Redlands (19-6, 8-2 SCIAC) returns home on Saturday, March 24, for a SCIAC twin bill against the Caltech Beavers. First pitch is slated for 11 a.m. at the Yard.
