GLENDALE, Ore. – In a contest that was always within striking distance for the Corban University Baseball team thanks to a phenomenal effort from their starting pitcher, the Warriors narrowly fell 5-4 to the No. 10-ranked Firestorm of Arizona Christian University in a back-and-forth first of three games scheduled in Arizona over the next three days.
"Chris pitched outstanding tonight, he showed grit and determination and never wavered, and I'm incredibly proud of how he competed," began Warriors' head coach Ryan Harris. "Despite the fact that offensively we had 14 strikeouts and multiple errors on defense, we had a chance to win that game. We have a very capable team and playing these games are invaluable. We must choose to attack the game. We're looking forward to playing ACU again tomorrow and having an opportunity to even the series."
After a short appearance to begin his Corban career last weekend at home against Simpson University, senior southpaw Chris Shaffer provided the Warriors (3-2) with an opportunity to steal a win in enemy territory to start the series at Greenway High School but unfortunately came out on the losing end of a one-run ballgame despite hurling 117 pitches in 6.0 innings against the Firestorm (5-3).
A solo homer off the bat of leftfielder Kimo Fukofuka in the first inning provided Arizona Christian with an early lead, to which they added another run to in the bottom of the second when a run scored on an RBI line drive double down the rightfield line by centerfielder Logan Sanders.
In the top of fifth, the Corban offense finally woke up and took advantage of numerous free passes to scored three runs and take a one-run lead off ACU ace Frank Wierman, who would eventual settle for the no decision after being charged with all three of the Warriors' runs before getting pulled for the bullpen.
The Firestorm tied the contest at 3-3 with an RBI single and eventually reclaimed the lead on their own bases loaded walk, which would be the final run allowed by Shaffer before giving way to redshirt sophomore relief pitcher Eddie Gould to start the seventh. Gould held Arizona Christian to just one run on a sacrifice fly, setting the Navy and Gold up for a two-run ninth inning deficit.
Junior shortstop Isaac Bateman reached with one out in the ninth and would come around to score on a sacrifice fly by junior designated hitter Peyton Rickard, putting the tying run at second with two outs in a 5-4 ballgame. Coach Harris inserted a pinch hitter in an attempt to throw the Firestorm for a loop, though ACU closer Jackson Hohensee was able to induce a first pitch ground out to first base and hold on for the narrow victory in a sloppy contest for both programs.
Shaffer fell to 0-1 on the season after allowing four runs on seven hits, through racked up seven strikeouts along the way with six free passes and two hit batters. Meanwhile, Gould allowed the one sacrifice fly on three hits and earned a punchout.
Firestorm relief pitcher R'Mani Adams is the winning pitcher of tonight's game as he left the game with the lead following the sixth inning where ACU reclaimed their lead, with reliever Sean Wiese holding for two innings and Hohensee picking up the save for the hometown team.
Sophomore leftfielder Lucas Mertlich and junior rightfielder Chase Elliott were both credited with the only hits of the evening for the Corban offense, though stat corrections could result in base knocks for other Warriors following the review period. The third through sixth batters in the Corban lineup all picked up a single RBI, with senior Ryan Clay representing the only student-athlete to record both an RBI and run scored.
Arizona Christian picked up multi-hit performances from Sanders, second baseman Jaylen Edmonds, and catcher Ryan Eastham from the middle of their lineup, with Fukofuka and designated hitter Tanner Vielguth both bringing home a pair of RBI.
The Warriors and Firestorm are back at it tomorrow night at 7pm AT/6pm PT at Greenway High School for the second of three contests in central Arizona.
Follow Corban Athletics:
Facebook l Twitter l Instagram l YouTube l Email