The No. 23 University of Redlands baseball team defeated Whittier College, 16-2, in a Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) game Friday afternoon at Memorial Field in Whittier.
Whittier's pitchers struggled against a potent Bulldog lineup, as the Maroon and Gray tapped the Poet hurlers for 16 runs off 24 hits. The Redlands pitching staff held Whittier's order in check, yielding two runs off eight hits.
Senior catcher Jefre Johnson (Canby, OR) broke out the lumber early on in the first, connecting on the first pitch he faced with one man on. He lifted the ball over the centerfield wall to give Redlands the 2-0 advantage. Junior rightfielder Nate Carlson (Portland, OR) and sophomore second baseman Chase Tucker (Poway, CA) whacked back-to-back RBI singles later on in the frame, pushing across graduate student designated hitter Brett Sandford (Santa Barbara, CA) and graduate student first baseman Matt Hughes (Westminster, CA), respectively.
Using his trademark speed, junior leftfielder Brandon Owashi (San Diego, CA) came home on a passed ball in the second to move the lead to five. Redlands then plated four in the third to gain a commanding 9-0 edge.
Senior centerfielder Will Wetmore (Santa Cruz, CA) stroked his second homer of the season in the fourth when he blasted a two-run shot over the leftfield fence, while Tucker drove in Johnson in the fifth by means of a sacrifice fly.
Whittier held the Bulldog bats at bay in the sixth, seventh and eighth before Redlands staked itself to a 16-0 lead with a four-run ninth. The Poets scored twice in the bottom of the ninth to erase the shutout bid.
On the hill for the Bulldogs, senior pitcher Michael Lessig (Fountain Hills, AZ) received the start and threw seven scoreless frames, scattering six hits while striking out eight. Lessig was credited with the win and now moves to 6-1 on the year. Sophomore pitchers Jeff Cashmer (Cherry Valley, CA) and Mike Massari (Palmdale, CA) relieved Lessig and tossed the eighth and ninth, respectively. Cashmer retired the side, while Massari surrendered two runs off two hits.
Whittier used six different pitchers, but Ryan Schwinn was tagged with the loss after yielding the first four runs of the contest. Schwinn lasted just one inning.
Owashi, Johnson, Hughes and senior shortstop Zack Braband (Alameda, CA) each compiled three hits in the winning effort, while Reed Tuttle and David Tucci paced the Poet attack with 2-for-2 outings at the plate.
With the victory, the Bulldogs have now won 17 of their last 18 contests and are currently riding a seven-game win streak. The Maroon and Gray carries a No. 23 national ranking in the D3baseball.com Top-25 Poll and a No. 9 national ranking in the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA)/Collegiate Baseball Newspaper NCAA Division III Top-30 Poll.
Redlands (22-3, 14-2 SCIAC) hosts Whittier tomorrow afternoon in a SCIAC doubleheader at The Yard. The first pitch is scheduled for 11 a.m.