The University of Redlands baseball team outslugged Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges, 12-10, in game one of a Senior Day doubleheader before dropping the nightcap, 2-9, at The Yard in Redlands on Saturday.

Both teams combined for six home runs in the first contest, but Redlands advanced its record to 13-0 in games where the team hit at least one long ball.

After the Bulldog defense held the Stags scoreless in the top of the first, senior leftfielder Kyle Rizzo (Redlands, CA) reached base in Redlands’ first at bat of the afternoon by means of a double. He moved to third on a groundout and then eventually trotted home on a single to left center by junior catcher Jefre Johnson (Canby, OR).

Claremont-Mudd-Scripps put one on the board in the third inning thanks to a David Spiller home run, and the Stags took a 2-1 lead in the top of the fourth. The Maroon and Gray, however, responded with a five-run fourth that included seven hits.

Johnson started the rally with a single up the middle and then took two more bags following a double by sophomore designated hitter Manny Cardeiro (San Diego, CA). Senior rightfielder Corey Vane (Simi Valley, CA) dropped a single into center field, plating Johnson, before stealing second. After the Stags retired their first batter of the frame, senior centerfielder Jordan Snider (Temecula, CA) pushed Cardeiro across, giving Redlands a 3-2 advantage. The next batter, senior third baseman Jon Eubanks (Chula Vista, CA), knocked a single up the middle and brought home Vane. Junior shortstop Zack Braband (Alameda, CA) roped a single to right field, and Rizzo’s fielder’s-choice ball in the infield during the ensuing at bat scored Snider. Rizzo stole second and graduate student second baseman Tom Ledda (Daly City, CA) walked, setting Johnson up for an RBI single through the right side, which scored Eubanks. The inning ended, however, when Rizzo rounded third and was thrown out at home by the left fielder.

The Stags narrowed the deficit with a four-run fifth, which included a grand slam by Andrew Blomberg.

Redlands garnered the lead in the bottom of the inning with two runs on three hits as senior first baseman Matt Goldstein (Lincoln, CA) and Vane each touched home plate. From that point on, the Maroon and Gray would not relinquish its lead.

Eubanks blasted a two-run shot to left field in the seventh while Goldstein also motored his way home in the frame, putting the Bulldogs out in front, 11-7. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, however, scored one in the eighth and two in the ninth, all of which came from home runs.

Sophomore pitcher Derek Johnson (Canby, OR) adopted a three-run lead in the eighth and held on to gain his 11th save of the season.

J. Johnson tore apart the two Stag pitchers he faced, corralling four hits in five at bats while scoring two runs and driving in three.

Vane went 3-for-5, pacing the team with three runs and one RBI while fielding a game high in putouts among outfielders with four.

In addition, Rizzo, Goldstein, Snider and Eubanks all notched more than one hit.

Eubanks, whose presence in the starting lineup proved to be his final appearance of his Bulldog career, tallied the team-high in RBI with four.

Freshman pitcher Josh Snyder (Englewood, CO) proved effective on the mound, outdueling Claremont-Mudd-Scripps’ starter, Max Rose, for the win. He struck out three while allowing seven hits in five innings of service.

Between the first and second games, the team honored its 12 seniors in a Senior Day ceremony.

The Stags never trailed in the second tilt of the day and salvaged the series with a victory.

Redlands surrendered just three runs in the first three innings and cut the lead to two with one run on three hits in the third.

Six Claremont-Mudd-Scripps runs in the fifth, however, proved insurmountable as the Bulldogs managed only one more the rest of the game, which came from Goldstein following a Snider double to left center in the seventh.

Leading the way for the Maroon and Gray offensively, Rizzo and Dunn both accumulated two hits.

Taking the ball as the starter in the back end of the twin bill, junior pitcher Michael Lessig (Fountain Hills, AZ) tossed four innings and struck out a game-high seven batters in the losing effort.

The Bulldog bullpen, which included freshman pitcher Brock Jacobo (Yuma, AZ), freshman pitcher Mike Massari (Palmdale, CA) and senior pitcher Kevin Bissell (Orange, CA), fared well against the Stag lineup, giving up a combined one run on four hits in five innings of relief.

Jacobo entered the game with the bases loaded and no outs in the fifth and stopped the bleeding, allowing a mere two hits. He gave up one base knock in the sixth and none in the seventh before he handed the ball off to Massari. Both Vane and Rizzo helped Massari retire the side in the eighth, and Bissell tossed a solid ninth inning, closing out his career donning the Maroon and Gray with just one hit charged against him in the frame.

David Ulrich of Claremont-Mudd-Scripps pitched a complete game and garnered his third win of the year.

Redlands (25-15, 14-7 SCIAC) awaits a potential at-large bid into the NCAA Championships in the upcoming weeks. The team’s regular-season finish marks the fifth straight 20-win season for Head Coach Scott Laverty.