By Ron Smith
March 16, 2019
 
(ATHERTON, Calif.) Westmont Baseball (22-3, 9-3 GSAC), ranked fifth in the NAIA, split a Saturday doubleheader with Menlo (7-10, 3-6) to take three out of four from the Oaks in Westmont's first GSAC road series of the year.
 
"Of course, we want to win every game," said Westmont head coach Robert Ruiz, "but to get three out of four on the road with your everyday third baseman, clean-up hitter and captain out of the lineup, you have to feel good about that."
 
Ruiz was referring to last year's All-GSAC selection Luke Coffey who was unavailable for the series due to an injury.
 
Westmont had trouble getting the offense going in the first game, producing just three hits – all singles – over the nine inning game. Center fielder Bryce Morrison recorded the Warriors' first hit in the fourth inning, hitting a 2-1 pitch up the middle. Isaiah Leach accounted for the other two hits with a single down the left field line in the seventh and a single to left in the ninth.
 
"Their starting pitcher (Parker Hall) did a good job keeping us off balance and we couldn't get to him," said Ruiz. "He got into a rhythm and we couldn't break it. We put together some long at bats but couldn't get anything productive done."
 
Hall (1-1) allowed just one hit over six innings. He walked four and struck out two. Jacob Ramirez was awarded the save after pitching three innings and allowing just two hits. Ramirez struck out one and did not surrender a walk.
 
The Oaks tallied 12 hits and scored three times in the third inning to account for all the scoring. Three singles, a walk, a hit batsman and an error led to the three runs for the Oaks, with Dalton Maxwell and Brice Foster each picking up RBIs.
 
Westmont's Justin Sanders (4-1) was charged with the first loss of the season. He surrendered three runs (two earned) on 10 hits in five and two-thirds innings of work. Sanders walked two and struck out one.
 
"Justin didn't have his best stuff today, but he found a way to keep the score where it was," said Ruiz. "In the final inning, we felt like we had a chance to go ahead and take a lead, even though it didn't end up happening."
 
Westmont turned things around in the second game, jumping out to a 4-0 lead in the top of the first. Taylor Garcia delivered a lead-off single to center then took second when Tyler Roper reach as the result of an error by the Oaks.
 
With Paul Mezurashi taking over at first as a courtesy runner, Taylor Bush drove a single into center field to score Garcia and advance Mezurashi to third.
 
One out later, with Bush taking off for second, Nick Sablock drove a ball into center field. The ball flew over the center fielder's grasp and rolled to the centerfield fence, where it became unplayable. Sablock was awarded second base on what the official scorer ruled a two-base error. Mezurashi scored from second but Bush was sent back to third due to the unplayable ball. That gave Westmont a 2-0 lead.
 
With two away, Travis Vander Molen doubled to left center on a full count, driving in Bush and Sablock to give Westmont a 4-0 advantage.
 
In the bottom of the third, the Oaks pulled to within one. After Donny Bendo led off the inning with a single to left, Nick Adgar hit a ground ball to short that hit the lip of the grass and bounded over Bush who leapt, but couldn't reach the ball. Dalton Maxwell then doubled to right field, driving in Bendo and Adgar. One out later, Travis Danielson singled to left to bring home Maxwell and made the score 4-3.
 
"You hit a four spot to start the game off and it feels like you have a little breathing room," said Ruiz. "They started to scratch their way back into the game. We were getting guys on but couldn't get them in. All of the sudden, it felt like the final inning in the last four or five innings we played."
 
Four innings in a row, including the balance of the third, Menlo advanced the tying run to third base. However, Westmont's bullpen kept the run from scoring.
 
In the third, Danielson would make his way to third with two away. Nolan Cannon, who had taken over for starter Eric Oseguera and would eventually be credited with the win, coaxed Matt Polomino to ground out to second to end the threat.
 
In the fourth, with a man on third and one away, Cannon would get Adgar to fly out to shallow right field. Isaiah Leach caught the ball for the second out then threw home to prevent Aaron Flores at third from scoring. Flores found himself caught between third and home and tried to return to third. However, Roper received Leach's thrown from the outfield and fired over to Andrew Bayard at third who tagged Flores out.
 
The fifth inning saw Dante Poleselli enter the game with runners on first and second and no outs. Poleselli persuaded Danielson to ground into a double play for the first two outs, with Eric Whitfield advancing to third on the play. On a 0-1 count, Poleselli retired Foster and the side on a foul out to first.
 
In the sixth inning, Bailey Reid took the mound with runners at first and second and one out. Reid struck out Bendo, but a passed ball on the final strike allowed the runners to move up to second and third. Reid then struck out Adgar on four pitches to keep Westmont ahead by one.
 
"We went to our pen fairly early trying to hold on to that lead," said Ruiz. "We had a number of pitchers that did an incredible job of keeping the score where it was."
 
Having escaped imminent danger in the previous four innings, Westmont secured an insurance policy by pushing four runs across home plate in the seventh and final inning. After Garcia reached on a lead-off walk, he advanced to second when Roper was hit by a pitch. Daniel Netz took over for Roper as a courtesy runner before both runners advanced on a balk. Bush was then intentionally walked to load the bases with no outs.
 
"Taylor Garcia sparked our offense," asserted Ruiz. "After a stagnant offensive effort for our team in the first inning, he comes into the second game with a lead-off single that led to a four-run innings. In the seventh inning, he draws a lead-off walk when we needed a little momentum."
 
On the eighth pitch of his at bat, Bryce Morison ripped a double down the left-field line to drive in Garcia and Netz and move Bush to third. A sacrifice fly by Sablock scored Bush for the third run of the inning. An infield hit by Leach moved Morison to third before Vander Molen produced the second sacrifice fly of the inning to bring Morison home.
 
Reid returned to the mound in the bottom of the seventh and collected his third save of the weekend and seventh of the season. After retiring Maxwell on a ground out, Shane Jones doubled down the left field line. However, Reid struck out the next two batters to finish the game.
 
"This weekend was the best I've seen Bailey," noted Ruiz. "He was composed and it was a great sign of his maturity as a pitcher. His continuing to develop and is moving in the right direction."
 
Cannon was credited his first win on the season after pitching one and two-third scoreless innings while allowing two hits.
 
Five different Warrior relievers pitched four and two-third innings without surrendering a run. Collectively, they allowed six hits, struck out two and walked one.
 
With the results, Ruiz moves to within two games of tying John Kirkgard for the most coaching wins in program history at 281. Ruiz' record of 279-206-1 gives him the second-highest winning percentage in program history at .575, and the best among those who coached more than one year. Ruiz is in his 10th year as head coach of the Warrior program.
 
Next week, the Warriors will host #15 Vanguard (18-7, 8-4) in a four-game series at Russ Carr Field. Westmont is currently in first place in the GSAC standings with a one-game lead over Vanguard and Hope International (15-13, 10-6). First pitch of Friday's double