SALEM, Ore. -- In their last series of the season, the George Fox baseball team ended the day with two wins after their doubleheader against Willamette. The Bruins took game one 6-3 after putting up three runs in extra innings, before they claimed game two in a come-from-behind victory, 10-8.
How It Happened - Game One
The game began with a true pitcher's duel; in the first five innings alone, neither team could put any runs on the board. For George Fox,
Lucas Plenert was on the mound dealing out strikes left and right. With the help of GFU's defense, the Bearcats were unable to find any holes in the field. It took until the bottom of the sixth for there to be any offensive action and it belonged to Willamette after they had recorded a solo homer. While the Bearcats were able to take the lead, they couldn't hold onto it for long because — in the very next inning — the Bruins bats became alive as well.
Brennan Bates started things off for Fox in the top of the seventh; with a first pitch swing, Bates tattooed the ball for a solo homer over the left field wall.
Gabe DeBenedetto kept the hitting train going with a hard single before a
Berkley Reents walk advanced DeBenedetto to second. Next up to the plate was
Jayson Au Hoy and with a deep single to right center, it not only moved Reents to third, but it also brought DeBenedetto around to score. Even though George Fox had taken the lead, they were still hungry for more. After
Garrett Strube was hit to load the bases, a single from
Joey Marasco to the left side was enough to bring Reents sliding safely into home and make the score 3-1.
Despite Fox's dominant offensive performance in the sixth, the Bearcats made sure to answer back in the seventh; with a two-run homer, Willamette tied the game back up 3-3. Through the eighth and the ninth, both teams fought to regain the advantage. With
Joey Wilcox now on the rubber for George Fox, he made sure to shut down any offense the Bearcats attempted to produce. With the game still tied by the end of the ninth, the Bruins and Bearcats were sent into extra innings and Fox made sure to make the most of the opportunity.
This time around,
Adam Fulton began GFU's offensive streak with a first pitch shot to center field for a single. It didn't take long until Fulton landed on second after DeBenedetto caused chaos in the field, causing Willamette to make a crucial error. In the very next at-bat, the pressure once again became too much for the Bearcats; Reents was able to put the ball in motion which not only caused another Willamette error, but also loaded the bases for George Fox.
All it took was a sac fly from
Andre Butler to score Fulton and move DeBenedetto to third. Soon after, Reents was able to show off his speed on the base path and snuck in a steal to second, giving the Bruins two runners in scoring position. After a well-disciplined walk from
Ryden Yoshikawa, the Bearcats were forced to make a pitching change, but even that couldn't stop Fox. On a 0-2 pitch, Marasco was able to smack one out to left field to score both DeBenedetto and Reents to double GFU's score. While the Bearcats tried to make a comeback, they were quickly shut down by Bruin pitcher
Andrew Miller. With one final out, George Fox took game one 6-3 in extra innings.
How It Happened - Game Two
Unlike the game before, the second game got off to a hot start on the offensive end. Marasco started things off with a walk before a SAC bunt from Fulton moved Marasco into scoring position at second. Seeing an opportunity, Bates continued to be a powerful and reliable hitter for George Fox; he teed up the ball and sent a moonshot over the right field wall for a two-run homer that gave the Bruins an early 2-0 advantage. However, Willamette was ready to answer back. After a couple of doubles, singles, and steals the game was tied 2-2 in the bottom of the second.
Despite the Bearcats answer, GFU remained unfazed and their bats were even more aggressive than before. Once again, the top of the third started off with a walk — this time from
Kaden Oshiro — and once again a SAC bunt from Marasco helped advance Oshiro to second. Fulton was next up to the plate and he was able to squeeze a single through the right side to move Oshiro to third. In a critical point of the game,
Austin Stalwick was able to get his first hit of the game; with a beautiful hit down the line, Stalwick was able to double to not only move Fulton to third, but it helped Oshiro cross home plate as well, 3-2.
With only one out down in the third, the Bruins offense rally was far from finished. On a Willamette wild pitch, Stalwick was able to advance to third, but Fulton unfortunately got out in the process. Despite this, a hard hit single to the left side from Bates shortly after was enough to bring Stalwick in to score. In the very next at-bat,
Declan Corrigan jumped on the hitting train and with a driving swing, he sent a shot over the left center field wall for a two run to further widen the gap in the score to 6-2. Even though the Bruins held a significant lead, the Bearcats were able to slowly but surely take the lead. After some doubles, a grand slam, and some steals, Willamette made the game a close 8-6 in the bottom of the third.
The offensive streaks for both teams began to slow down as the game became defense oriented once more. Over the next five innings, no more runs — let alone hits — were allowed; for George Fox,
Bryan Ho and
Grant Baskin were on the rubber making it difficult for the Bearcats to even touch the ball. It all came down to the ninth inning for the Bruins to try and make something happen. Butler was the first to put the ball in play and after smacking a line drive to center field, he landed on second for a powerful double. However, it didn't take long before Butler was sliding safely into third off of a Willamette wild pitch. All it took was an Au Hoy SAC hit to help Butler cross home plate, 8-7.
Tension was high as Fox tried to continue their rally with two outs already down and only one run away from tying the game. Coming in to wake up GFU's offense was Marasco and Fulton; after Marasco was walked and Fulton was hit, the two were advanced to scoring position at third and second after a pass ball. As Stalwick stepped into the box, all the pressure fell on his shoulders, but he didn't seem to mind; with an effortless swing, Stalwick sent the ball to right center for a game-changing double that brought both Marasco and Fulton home to take back the lead.
After
Evan Balingit came in to pinch run for Stalwick, George Fox continued to look for insurance runs. After a great at-bat — including three consecutive foul balls — Bates battled back for a hit that helped Balingit cross home plate without any problems. With GFU now up, they needed to play lockdown defense in order to win the game, and that's exactly what they did. Miller came out to close the game and after a three-up-three-down bottom of the ninth, the Bruins took game two after a thrilling offensive performance, 10-8.
Top Performances
In the first game,
Joey Marasco led Fox in hits and RBI's with three apiece, while
Jayson Au Hoy followed close behind in hits with two. While George Fox had a great offensive game, it was through their defense that they were able to win — especially because of the pitchers.
Lucas Plenert recorded 10 strikeouts and only allowed three runs in the seven innings he pitched;
Joey Wilcox was awarded the win, making his new record 2-0, while
Andrew Miller recorded his fifth save of the season.
In game two, Fox had 10 hits with
Andre Butler leading the way with three while
Brennan Bates and
Austin Stalwick followed with two apiece; Bates and Stalwick also ended the game with three RBIs each as well. Defensively,
Grant Baskin was awarded the win making his new record 1-1, while Miller recorded his sixth save.
What It Means
George Fox rises to 16-23 (10-13 NWC) and Willamette falls to 8-29 (4-19 NWC).
What Happens Next
George Fox will not only end their series against Willamette on Sunday, May, but it will be the Bruins' last game of the season; first pitch is scheduled for 12:00 in Salem, Ore. After this, Fox will be taking a break before they return back in the fall for off-season training.
