The No. 11 University of Redlands baseball team plated seven runs in the eighth inning as it defeated the University of La Verne, 14-6, in Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) action Friday afternoon at The Yard.
The Maroon and Gray got on the board early in the game, scoring once in the second. Redlands piled on three more in the fourth and added another three in the fifth to take a commanding 7-0 lead through five innings. La Verne fought back, however, scoring four unanswered runs to cut the deficit to three heading into the home half of the eighth. The Bulldogs would pull away in the eighth, scoring seven runs on seven hits. The Leopards produced a pair of runs in the ninth, but it was not enough to match Redlands' output.
As a team, the Bulldogs barely outhit the Leopards by a 15-14 margin, but the difference came in Redlands' ability to advance runners in scoring position. Redlands went 11-for-18 with runners in scoring position, while La Verne batted 1-for-16 in the same statistical category. The Leopards stranded 14 runners throughout the contest.
Junior pitcher Derek Johnson (Canby, OR) earned the win on the hill for the Bulldogs and moved to 10-0 on the year. He lasted 6 2/3 innings, yielding three runs on 10 hits while striking out four. Sophomore pitcher Brock Jacobo (Yuma, AZ) took over and recorded the final out in the seventh before tossing the entirety of the eighth. Jacobo allowed just one run on one hit and struck out one. In the ninth, senior pitcher Jack Winters (Oradell, NJ) shut the door on La Verne despite some struggles in the early goings of the frame. Winters gave up two runs on three hits.
Matt Baudino shouldered the loss for the Leopards, surrendering seven runs, one of which was earned, on eight hits across five innings of duty.
Junior rightfielder Nate Carlson (Portland, OR) enjoyed a stellar outing at the dish, going 4-for-4 with three runs scored and two RBI. Senior centerfielder Will Wetmore (Santa Cruz, CA), junior leftfielder Brandon Owashi (San Diego, CA), senior third baseman/first baseman Michael Lessig (Fountain Hills, AZ) and sophomore second baseman Chase Tucker (Poway, CA) also had multi-hit performances.
Mike Surina and Cody Hazel led the Leopard attack with three hits each.
Redlands (27-4, 19-3 SCIAC) hosts Cal Lutheran University tomorrow afternoon in a SCIAC game. The first pitch is set for 1 p.m. at The Yard.
