After three and one-half hours, 18 runs and 26 hits, there was no winner to be found on the Vanguard University baseball field on Monday.
As darkness fell, officials Heath Jones and Chris Hickman suspended the 9-9 Golden State Athletic Conference game between visiting Westmont (7-5, 4-4 GSAC) and Vanguard (5-3. 2-3).
The stalemate of the game will remain until Vanguard journeys to Santa Barbara in the end of March for the start of a three-game series at Russ Carr Field. The Lions and Warriors will pick up exactly where they left off in the game – with the exception of being (according to MapQuest) 133.43 miles to the northwest of the contest’s origin.
With first pitch of the regularly scheduled March 29 game set for 3:00 p.m., the three-hundred-fourteenth pitch of the suspended game has been scheduled for 2:00 p.m.
Westmont struck first in the game fated for frustration with two runs in the first inning. J.J. Turbin drove in Chris Stroh with a single for the first run and Tommy Hocutt’s ground ball to first drove in Turbin for the second.
However, Vanguard snatched the lead from the Warriors with three runs in bottom of the first, two coming off a blast by Francisco Torres over the left field fence.
In the top of the third, Westmont evened the game at three when Turbin scored from third on what should have been the third out. With two away, Brandon Gildea struck out swinging but the ball got away from the catcher allowing Gildea to reach first and Turbin to cross the plate.
Vanguard broke the tie in the bottom of the fourth with one run the result of an RBI single by John Schwer and a second coming on a sacrifice fly by John Collins.
Gildea made it a 5-4 game in the top of the fifth with a single to left that drove in David Gabel. However, Vanguard added two more in the bottom of the fifth and another in the bottom of the sixth to take an 8-5 lead.
The Warriors scored three times in the top of the eighth inning to tie up the contest. With the bases loaded and nobody out, Turbin reached on an error that allowed Brent Fukushima to score. Gabel then delivered a sacrifice fly to left, scoring Stroh. Chito Elias provided the third run, scoring on a wild pitch.
In the bottom of the eighth, Vanguard recaptured the lead with a single up the middle by Nikko Tountas that drove in Schwer.
Westmont’s ninth run came in the top of the ninth. Kevin Hammer led off the inning with a double down the left-field line. One out later, he scored when Fukushima did the same.
Westmont hurler Brian Murphy pitched a one-two-three bottom of the ninth to force the game into extra innings – 47 days hence.
