NEWBERG, Ore. -- The George Fox baseball team showed great effort in two tight matchups against No. 11 Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, but came up just short in each, losing 4-5 in game one and 2-3 in game two.
How It Happened - Game One
Fox got off to a quick start, with starting pitcher
Aidan Rady shutting down the Stags 1-2-3 before
Garrett Strube's RBI single brought home
Gabe DeBenedetto to give the Bruins an early 1-0 lead. That lead would be short-lived, however, as CMS scored two runs in the top of the second to take a 2-1 lead.
The next three innings would be quick, as the Bruins and Stags combined for just three baserunners — two of which would be thrown out — over the next six half-innings. In the bottom of the fifth, GFU finally broke through;
Shayde Koga and
Mason Eastman each singled, before Koga was brought home on a
Noah Takayama RBI double. Though Eastman was thrown out on the relay, the Bruins had knotted the game, 2-2.
Three key plays over the next two innings helped CMS gain control of the game. After a sac fly in the seventh, the Stags scored two runs, one on an RBI groundout and one on a back-breaking two-out balk. Though the Bruins were down three heading into the bottom of the ninth, they did not give up in the slightest.
Brennan Bates got things started with a walk before a
Stanley Schoppe double got two Bruins in scoring position. An Eastman sac fly got the Bruins one run closer, and Takayama's second RBI double of the day scored Schoppe and put the tying run on second base.
Isaac Snyder stepped up with a chance for the unlikely comeback; unfortunately, a strikeout ended the Bruins' chances in a 4-5 loss.
How it Happened - Game Two
Once again, it was a pitcher's duel in the opening stages of the game as
Caleb Debban and the Stags' Kody Perry threw strike after strike. The Bruin southpaw was unstoppable — after getting himself out of a bases loaded jam in the second inning, Debban struck out six and allowed just three baserunners in a scoreless six innings pitched. While Debban was dealing,
Carson Coulter scored
BJ Tokushima in the third to give Fox a 1-0 lead.
As Debban exited the game, though, the Stags took advantage. Three walks and two hits in the top of the seventh inning gave Claremont-Mudd-Scripps a 3-1 lead, with the Bruins now in the rearview mirror.
Blane Peal stepped in on the mound for Fox, and made sure to keep his unearned runs stretch alive in the eighth inning. Then, it was the Bruins' turn to load the bases, with three walks and a hit loading the bases and scoring Eastman. With two outs, the bases still loaded, and the score 2-3,
Evan Balingit's ball appeared to be through the infield to score another run; however, a diving catch by third baseman Rider Gordon kept the home team off the scoreboard.
Peal retired the first two batters before
Andrew Miller finished the job to keep Fox down just one headed to the bottom of the ninth. This time, though, there would be no ninth inning that featured two doubles for the Bruins, as Fox managed just one baserunner on a hit by pitch and dropped the game, 2-3.
Top Performances
Noah Takayama ended his day 2-3 with two doubles and two RBI, while
Garrett Strube recorded three hits for the day.
Stanley Schoppe led the team with two runs scored, both in game one. On the mound,
Aidan Rady pitched six innings with just two runs against, while
Caleb Debban did not give up a run and struck out eight in six innings pitched in game two.
What It Means
The Bruins fall to 11-21 with their seventh straight loss, but still showed great effort against the No. 11 team in the country. The Stags improved to 24-8 overall.
What Comes Next
The Bruins will look to regain momentum with a win in a midweek conference game against Puget Sound (19-12, 8-7 NWC). The game, a rescheduled game from an April 6 rainout, is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April 22.
