Warriors remain unbeaten, tame Bulldogs 11-7
Bert Sahlberg, LCSC
LEWISTON, Idaho – After having its bats silenced and relying on pitching in its first two games, Lewis-Clark State (Idaho) busted out at the plate to defeat Tennessee Wesleyan 11-7 in the winner’s bracket at the 60th annual Avista NAIA World Series baseball championships on Tuesday night at Harris Field.
The victory left Lewis-Clark State, 51-7 overall, as the only undefeated team in the 10-team double-elimination tournament and guarantees the Warriors no worse than a third-place finish. Tennessee Wesleyan falls to 50-14.
LCSC collected only a total of 10 hits in its first two Series games but matched that total in Tuesday’s contest, including a pair of solo home runs. LCSC also took advantage of six walks, three errors and a hit batter to make the most of its scoring opportunities and only stranded three on base.
“That was definitely good to see,” LCSC coach Jeremiah Robbins said. “We got some hits when we needed them tonight.”
Tennessee Wesleyan also hit the ball well as it collected 13 hits. The Bulldogs’ problem is they couldn’t get the big hit when needed and left 11 stranded on base, including two in four different innings.
Jacob Zanon led LCSC by going 2-for-4 with three RBI and two runs scored, while Gunnar Buhner reached base all four times he batted and finished with three runs scored. Both hit solo home runs as well.
“I wasn’t worried about our hitting because we faced two good pitchers,” Zanon said about LCSC’s .175 batting average after the first two games. “We faced good pitching again tonight. I just think we were better focused. We don’t have to prove anything. We come out and work hard every day. We know we can hit all through the lineup.”
The contest featured LCSC taking the early 1-0 lead in the top of the first. Robert Smith reached on a walk, advanced to second on a wild pitch, and scored on a single by Zanon.
“I’m loving this right now,” Zanon said. “This is a great environment, even when you are not playing in a game. I’m having a great time and really enjoying it.”
The Warriors made it 2-0 in the second when Buhner hit his fourth home run of the season, a solo shot over the center-field fence.
The Bulldogs picked up their first run in the bottom of the second. Chevis Hoover singled up the middle to start the inning and Sully Rios Reyes followed with a single. Malik Stephens then singled in Hoover.
Tennessee Wesleyan took a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the third with a pair of runs to chase LCSC starter Peter Irvin. Wardy Polonco reached on an error, stole second and advanced to third on a ground out. Omar Gomez hit an RBI single to score Polonco and Gomez later scored on a double by Hoover.
LCSC answered with two runs in the top of the fifth for a 4-3 advantage. Buhner drew a one-out walk and Julian Ramon and Logan Smith followed with consecutive singles, the latter brought in Buhner. Smith also had an RBI single to put LCSC ahead for good.
Both teams added solo runs in the sixth inning. Zanon hit his 13th home run of the year to make it 5-3, but the Bulldogs were able to load the bases with no outs in the bottom of the sixth on singles by Rios Reyes, Alfred Cruz and Stephens. Polonco hit a grounder than the Warriors couldn’t quite turn a double play on and Rios Reyes scored to make it 5-4, but the Warriors got of the jam without further damage.
It was then the Warriors’ turn to load the bases and they took advantage with a six-run seventh inning, all with two outs, to break the game open. A single, an error and a walk loaded the bases with one out. Zanon drew a bases-loaded walk and J.J. Robinson was hit by a pitch to force in the first two runs. Micah Brown followed with an RBI single and a wild relay throw on the hit allowed another run. Tyler McDowell then drove in the final two with a single to make it 11-4.
The Bulldogs picked up two runs in the bottom of the eighth on three hits to make it 11-6. Pedro Barrios had an RBI double and Paolo Montezuma added an RBI single.
Tennessee Wesleyan added its final run in the ninth on a double by Hoover and a throwing error.
Henry McAree, the second of four Warrior pitchers, earned the win to improve to 8-0 on the season. He pitched 2.2 innings and allowed three hits and a run with four strikeouts.
Bulldog starter Diego Ibarra, 10-3, took the loss. He went six innings and allowed six hits and five runs. He also struck out four and walked two.
Tennessee Wesleyan will take on Faulkner in loser-out play Wednesday at 3 p.m. in a matchup of the top two seeds in the tournament. Bellevue will play LCSC at 6:30 p.m. If Bellevue beats LCSC, the Warriors will advance to the Championship game on Friday at 6:30 p.m. with Bellevue facing the winner of TWC and Faulkner on Thursday at 6:30 p.m.
Wednesday’s two contests will be shown live on ESPN3.
The Avista-NAIA Baseball World Series is a 10-team, double-elimination event hosted by Lewis-Clark State (Idaho). For more information on the 60th annual event, click
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