The University of Redlands baseball team fell in both contests to the Kingsmen of Cal Lutheran University on Saturday, losing the opener, 5-13, and game two, 1-11.
In game one, Redlands fell behind early, but actually took a 3-2 lead in the fifth inning when it scored three runs. Freshman catcher Christian Heideger (Shoreline, WA) got things started with a one-out single to left field. Then with two outs, freshman third baseman Mark Tumlinson (Topeka, KS) laced a single to right field, advancing Heideger to third.
Keeping the two-out rally alive, sophomore shortstop Jordan Dresner (Etiwanda, CA) hit an RBI single to the shortstop, cutting the deficit in half. Senior second baseman Jason Henning (Redlands, CA) followed Dresner's hit with a RBI base knock of his own, this one going to center field to bring home Tumlinson. Sophomore first baseman Sean McMillan (Redwood City, CA) capped off the stellar fifth frame with the Bulldogs' fifth hit of the inning on an RBI single to left field.
The sixth inning, however, saw the Maroon and Gray pitching staff allow eight hits and nine runs, giving the lead back to Cal Lutheran.
Not giving up without a fight, the Bulldogs got two runs back in the top of the eighth inning. Junior center-fielder Alex Scheiwe (Encinitas, CA) and sophomore right-fielder Nathaniel Acosta (Chino Hills, CA) recorded back-to-back hits early in the frame, and after Scheiwe scored on an error by the Kingsmen shortstop, Acosta crossed the plate when Tumlinson ripped his second single of the game.
Cal Lutheran tacked on two insurance runs in the bottom half of the eighth to put the game out of reach for the U of R, resulting in the eight-run defeat for Redlands.
Tumlinson racked up a team-best three hits in addition to scoring once and tallying one RBI. Scheiwe and Heideger both performed valiantly at the plate as well, combining for four hits between the two.
In the second game of the doubleheader, the Bulldogs used another two-out rally to take the early lead. In the top of the first, Henning doubled to left field and McMillan ripped an RBI single to left, plating Henning.
Redlands would surrender two runs in the bottom of the first inning and then five more in the bottom of the second. One more run for the Kingsmen in the third frame put the Maroon and Gray in a seven-run hole, one which it would not be able to climb out of.
Two runs in the sixth and one in the seventh for the Kingsmen ended the contest, resulting in the series win for Cal Lutheran.
At the dish in game two, Henning went 2-for-4 in addition to scoring the lone Bulldog run.
The U of R (7-9) hosts Bridgewater College (VA) and Kean University (NJ) on Wednesday, March 13. The first contest against Bridgewater is set for 11 a.m. while the game against Kean will begin at approximately 2:30 p.m.