NAIA Baseball National Championship, day 2

From the second day of the NAIA Baseball National Championship in Lewiston, ID:

Southeastern 15, Webber International 2. Halted by the run rule after seven innings. These two teams played five times during the regular season (the Fire won three of them), and traveled most of the way across the continent to play each other again.

Everything went the Fire’s way this time, and two Canadians in their lineup, Connor Hicks and Alfonso Villalobos, were a big part of it. Hicks got it started with an RBI double in the top of the first inning. Villalobos was next in the batting order; he hit a home run, and the Fire led 3-0. They added three runs in the third inning, one of them with Villalobos scoring on a wild pitch. In the fourth inning, Hicks got an RBI on a ground out, Villalobos hit an RBI single, and James Strom hit a two-run home run. The Fire led 11-0. John Rossi hit a two-RBI single in the sixth inning, and Hicks hit a solo home run in the seventh inning.

Reece Wissinger went the seven inning distance for the Fire, allowed one run on three hits, struck out four. Two of the strikeouts were the last two batters he faced. Wissinger also started a double play in the bottom of the third inning; he snagged a line drive, then threw to first to catch a baserunner who didn’t get back fast enough.

Villalobos finished 3-for-4 with four RBI and three runs scored. Camren Carrol went 2-for-2 for the Warriors. Blayne Huter got the loss. box score recap

U. of the Cumberlands 8, Grand View 6 (Grand View eliminated). This game was close all the way. The Patriots led 6-3 after six innings. The Patriots got two runs in the bottom of the third inning; they loaded the bases with two out, and Pedro Vasquez hit a ball that got by the third baseman. Two runs scored, but a possible third run was out at the plate. In the top of the fifth, two errors by Patriot shortstop Alec Gonzalez led to runners on first and second with one out. The Patriots got the second out on a good catch of a fly ball in foul territory on the left field side by Christian Thompson. However, Hank Himrich hit an RBI double to score two runs.

The Vikings loaded the bases with no outs with a single and two hit batters in the top of the seventh. They got one run on a sacrifice fly by Evan Borst that was caught in right field foul territory. However, a strike out and a fly out by Patriot pitcher Nolan Wilson limited the damage to one run. The Vikings had another threat in the top of the eighth. They got runners on second and third. Patrick Bergkamp hit a ground ball to third base, and Patriot third baseman Caden Petrey stepped on the bag to get the second out of the inning, but he made a bad throw to first that resulted in a run scoring. A hit batter loaded the bases again, but a deep fly ball hit to left field by Borst ended the inning. Only one run was scored, but the Vikings trailed by only 6-5.

The Patriots got two insurance runs in the bottom of the eighth on an RBI single by Petrey and a sacrifice fly by Derick Andiarena. They needed them, because Himrich led off the top of the ninth with a home run, making the score 8-6. They had the tying run on first when the game ended with a fly out.

The Vikings used four pitchers, the Patriots three. Each side got two unearned runs. Patriots starter Knicko Billings got the win; he went 6 1/3 innings, allowed two earned runs on seven hits, struck out four. J.D. Price got a save. Jacob Draeger got the loss. Edwin Martinez and Trent Prokes each finished 3-for-4 for the Patriots. Himrich finished 4-for-5 with a home run, a double, and three RBI for the Vikings.
box score recap

Loyola-New Orleans 12, British Columbia 9 (British Columbia eliminated). This game was tied 5-5 after three innings. The Wolf Pack got four runs in the bottom of the first inning, on a home run by Brandon Mooney, an RBI Single by Marcus Steen (Ladysmith, British Columbia), Landon Manson getting an RBI on a fielder’s choice, and Anthony Fernandez hitting an RBI single. Thunderbird starter Daniel Orfaly was chased and replaced by Ryan Beitel. The Thunderbirds took a brief lead with four runs in the top of the third, on a two-run home run by Jonny McGill, an RBI double by Kyle Yip, and an RBI single by David Krahn. Wolf Pack starter Brady Bowen was replaced by Cole Bordes, who faced three batters, and was replaced by Payton Cooper. The Wolf Pack tied the game with an RBI single by Cole Romero in the bottom of the third. They went ahead for good in the bottom of the fourth with a home run by Fernandez that went all the way to the left field bleachers, and a two-RBI single by Garrett Felix. The Thunderbirds got a run in the fifth, and the Wolf Pack got a run in the sixth, and led 9-6. (A great catch by shortstop David Draayers on a fly hit by Felix limited the damage to one run.) However, the turning point of this game was in the top of the seventh. The Thunderbirds got within one run on an RBI double by Krahn and an RBI single by Draayers. The Wolf Pack brought in Caden Durand to pitch. Aidan Rose flied out on a great play by Mooney at second base. The inning ended with another great play, this time by Felix in left field on an fly ball hit by Kaden Zarowny. So, two great defensive plays got the Wolf Pack out of the inning still in the lead.

In the bottom of the seventh, Romero hit an RBI double. He went to third on a ground out. The next batter, Drew Lee, bunted. The Thunderbirds tried to get Romero out at home, but he was safe on a close play. The Thunderbirds opened the top of the eighth with two hits, but then had three fly outs.

In the bottom of the eighth, Mooney hit what was initially called a home run in right field, but after a review, the call was changed to a double. He eventually scored anyway, on a sacrifice fly by Felix. The Thunderbirds got runners at first and third with nobody out in the top of the ninth, but Aidan Rose hit into a double play. A run came home, making the final score 12-9, but a fly out by Russell Young ended the game.

The Wolf Pack used five pitchers. Cooper, who pitched the fourth inning and part of the fifth, got the win. Durand got a save. Beitel, who pitched the second through fifth innings, got the loss. Mooney finished 4-for-4 with a home run, two doubles, an RBI, and three runs scored. Felix finished 2-for-4 with three RBI. Kyle Yip finished 4-for-5 with three doubles, an RBI, and three runs scored for the Thunderbirds. Krahn finished 3-for-5 with a double, three RBI, and two runs scored.

Attendance: 1,835 box score recap

Schedule for Monday, May 26:

11 AM PDT: Loyola-New Orleans vs. U. of the Cumberlands (loser out)

3 PM: George Gwinnett vs. Tennessee Wesleyan

6:30 PM: LSU-Shreveport vs. Hope International