SAN MARCOS, Calif. – The University of Redlands baseball team continued their hot start at the plate as they got an 18-7 road victory at St. Katherine thanks to 20 more hits and nine extra-base hits. The Bulldogs are now 4-1 overall.
Like has been the case with many of the Bulldogs games, they conceded the first run of the game in the bottom of the first but got three in the top of the third thanks to three bases-loaded walks from Max Clark (Fontana, Calif.), Jonah Advincula (Santa Clara, Calif.), and Matthew Brumbaugh (Chula Vista, Calif.).
In the next inning, the fourth, the Bulldogs scored six times as they took a 9-1 lead. The scoring got started by Jared Anderson (Gilbert, Ariz.) who doubled home Payton Walsh (Santa Ana, Calif.). An RBI-groundout by Mark Kirkland (Redlands, Calif.) preceded a two-run triple from Advincula. Brumbaugh then reached on an error that scored Advincula and made it 8-1. The sixth run of the inning came from Cade McClelland (Mission Viejo, Calif.) who also doubled and scored Brumbaugh.
The Bulldogs scored their 10th run off an RBI fielder's choice in the sixth inning that came off a Walsh ground ball and scored Clark.
The Bulldogs lead got a little uncomfortable in the bottom of the sixth when they allowed four and only led by five, 10-5. Max Smyley (Sarasota, Fla.) was able to ease some nerves with a solo home run, his fifth of the season, in the top of the seventh.
After allowing an unearned run in the bottom of the seventh, the Bulldogs put the game away with a seven-run eighth, highlighted by a three-run Esteban Nakashima (Riverside, Calif.) double. Anderson, Kirkland also drove in runs as the inning that was capped by a two-run home run by Clark. After a ninth-inning run allowed the Bulldogs got the 18-7 win.
Nine different Bulldogs got hits, with eight of them being multi-hit games. Anderson (3-for-6), Advincula (3-for-5), and McClelland (3-for-4) all recorded three-hit games. Nakashima, Clark, and Advincula all drove in three. Cameron Kundig (Redlands, Calif.) started and went 5.1 innings and picked up the win, moving to 2-0.
The Bulldogs will take their three-game winning streak into their conference opener at The Yard against Pomona-Pitzer on Friday, February 25 with the first pitch at 2:30 p.m.
