Box Score PORTLAND, Ore. – Buoyed
by 5.2 innings of stalwart relief by Taylor Hill,
the George Fox University Bruins closed the 'home' and
Northwest Conference portions of their 2012 baseball season by
completing a three-game sweep of the 21st-ranked Linfield College
Wildcats 9-1 Sunday afternoon here at the University of
Portland's Joe Etzel Field.
George Fox starter Tom Zarosinksi struggled with his control,
walking three in the top of the 1st but escaping unscathed as the
Wildcats' Tim Wilson was caught stealing at second and Jordan
Harlow was caught trying to advance to third on a ball four in the
dirt to Kyle Chamberlain to end the inning. After he hit two
batters with one out in the 2nd, however, he was pulled in favor of
Hill (4-3), who came on to get a ground double play to end the
inning.
Hill proceeded to blank the Wildcats over the next five innings
before they finally got to him for a run in the 8th, but by then,
the Bruins had the game well in handd. The senior
right-hander scattered six hits in his 5.2 innings, striking out
three with no walks, before Clay Gartner finished with two innings
of one-hit relief.
The Bruins struck for two runs in the 1st against wild Linfield
right-hander Chris Haddeland (1-2). David Greenstein led off
with a single, stole second, and went to third on Taylor
Hunter's single off the glove of diving third baseman
Harlow. Haddeland's first wild pitch scored Greenstein
and sent Hunter to second, and Danny Clifford's single to
left put Hunter on third. Haddeland then threw another one in
the dirt and to the backstop as Hunter scored.
In the 4th, Haddeland hit Derek Blankenship and Austin Egger,
and with two out, John Mountz grounded a single to right to score
Blankenship. Jared Chase's soft single to center, just
out of the reach of second baseman Wilson, scored Egger, and
Greenstein delivered Mountz and Chase with a ringing double to
left-center.
The Bruins tacked on three more in the 7th against reliever Zach
Brandon. Greenstein and Hunter singled, and Clifford knocked
them both in with a double to the wall in dead center. Jacob
Nolte relieved and threw a wild pitch to send Clifford to third,
then gave up a run-scoring triple down the left-field line to
Timothy Williams.
Linfield got its only run in the 8th off Hill. Wilson and
Harlow singled to put runners at the corners, and Gartner threw a
wild pitch as Wilson scored before settling down to get three
straight outs. He gave up a hit to Chance Laboda in the 9th
before inducing a game-ending double play from Kenny Johnson
George Fox is now 19-18 overall while Linfield is 21-13.
Both teams finished with 15-9 conference records, tying for fourth
place.
The Bruins recognized six graduating seniors playing their last
'home' game in pre-game ceremonies: Greenstein, Hunter,
Hill, John Mountz, Brian Davis, and Brian Ranta. George Fox
actually played no games this year at their home park, Morse Field,
due to excessively-wet grounds that will probably not dry out until
some time in summer.
NEXT: With final exams next week, George Fox
will be off until closing the season with three games in the
Linfield Tournament Friday-Sunday, May 4-6. The Bruins will
take on Pacific Lutheran University on May 4 at 6:30 p.m.,
Lewis-Clark State College on May 5 at 12:00 noon, and Linfield on
May 6 at 3:30 p.m. ... Linfield visits Lewis-Clark State this
Friday-Sunday for three singles, with games at 6:00 on Friday and
1:00 p.m. the other two days.