Down by one run in the top of the ninth with the bases loaded, Westmont men’s baseball had high hopes as Sam Wiley, the team’s best hitter (.390 batting average) stepped to the plate with two outs. Wiley already had three hits on the day, including a double in the fourth inning that drove in a run. But a ground out to second base ended the game and Biola (12-11, 6-5 GSAC) escaped with a 5-4 victory.
Kyle Noe took the loss for the Warriors after giving up the go ahead run in the bottom of the eighth. Noe pitched just one inning in relief, allowing two hits and one earned run. Timothy Crabbe was the starter for Westmont. Crabbe pitched five innings giving up four runs, two earned, on five hits and five walks.
Biola’s Steven Alexander was awarded the win after pitching the eighth inning and striking out the side. A save was awarded to Billy Vopinek, his seventh of the year.
Westmont hung a run on the scoreboard in the third inning when Wiley’s double down the right field line drove in Brent Meschuk. Meschuk had reached on a fielder’s choice before advancing to second on a wild pitch.
The Warriors added three more runs in the fourth inning after Pete McCarthy single down the right field line with one away. A groundout to the shortstop by David Stout advanced McCarthy to second. Zeke Torres singled to center field, moving McCarthy to third.
With two away, head coach Scott Deck gave the steal sign to Torres. The catcher’s throw missed the mark which not only gave Torres second base, but also allowed McCarthy to score. Taylor Grace followed with a double down the left-field line to score Torres. Grace then scored on a single to right-center by Jordan Bottenfield (2 for 4).
Biola scored one run in the bottom of the fourth on an RBI single by Brent Opdyke and then added three more in the bottom of the fifth, two of which were unearned. That tied the score at four runs each and it remained that way until the bottom of the eighth inning. A leadoff single by Vopinek, a sacrifice bunt by Chris Foreman and an RBI-single by Brent Chavez result in the winning run for the Eagles.
Westmont will be back in action on Friday when the team hosts Trinity International (Ill.) at Russ Carr Field. Game time is at 3:00 p.m.
