Best Senior Day Ever
                                                                                                                
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
 
By Ron Smith
April 13, 2019
 
(SANTA BARBARA, Calif.) Senior Day was about as good as it can get. Not only did #18 Westmont Baseball (31-10, 18-10 GSAC) honor 15 graduating seniors in pregame festivities, but the Warriors went on to complete a four-game sweep of #23 The Master's (27-13-1, 18-10 GSAC) by taking both ends of Saturday's doubleheader.
 
The Warriors won the first game on Saturday by a score of 11-7, then claimed the second game on a walk-off RBI-single to left by Nick Sablock in the 10th inning.
 
Westmont starter Justin Sanders was awarded the win for the first game. The right-hander gave up three runs on five hits in six innings of work. He walked three and struck out three.
 
The game remained scoreless until the third inning when Westmont tallied four runs. Taylor Bush drove in the first run with a single to right that drove in  Bryce Morison from third and advanced Sablock to second.
 
With Isaiah Leach at the plate, Bush and Sablock attempted a double steal. The Master's catcher Byron Smith threw to third in an attempt to retire a sliding Sablock. The ball got past Anthony Lepre, who was playing third, and went into left.
 
Sablock, laying in the dirt at third base after his slide, did not realize the ball had bounded past the bag until left fielder Nick Tuttle was on his way to recover it. Bush, who was halfway to third before he realized that Sablock occupied the base, had to reverse direction and return to second. Sablock, who had by that time regained his feet, dashed for home when Tuttle threw to second in an attempt to retire Bush. Bush, however, returned safely to second as Sablock touched home plate to record the Warriors' second run.
 
After Leach walked, both runners advanced a base on a passed ball. Andrew Bayard then single to center field, driving in both Bush and Leach.
 
In the fourth inning, Westmont made it a 5-0 game when Morison's sacrifice fly to right drove in Taylor Garcia from third base.
 
The Master's got on the scoreboard in the top of the sixth with a two-run home run by Lepre.
Westmont answered back in the bottom half of the inning on a sacrifice fly by Luke Coffey that drove in Paul Mezurashi, and in a double by Sablock that scored Morison.
 
Sablock went nine of 16 in the series with three doubles and five RBIs.
 
In the top of the seventh, the Mustangs closed the gap to 7-3 when Aaron Shackelford recorded a sacrifice fly to left that scored Jeremiah Ferris from third. In the bottom half of the seventh, however, Westmont added four more runs to go ahead 11-3.
 
Leach, who had been robbed of a home run in his previous at bat by Max Maitland in center, made sure his two-run bomb in the seventh was not coming back. Later in the inning, Coffey was walked with the bases loaded before Morison delivered a sacrifice fly to center that brought in Jeremiah Canada.
 
Morison hit four home runs and a triple in the four-game series. The senior had two sacrifice flies, drove in 11 runs and walked four times. He posted a series slugging percentage of 1.750.
 
In the top of the ninth, The Mustangs scored four times to cut the deficit in half. Maitland contributed a sacrifice fly before Shackelford and Lepre hit back-to-back bombs to account for three of the runs.
 
With two away and men on first and second, Sean Coyne was called upon to pitch. The senior struck out Tuttle on five pitches to end the game and earn his second save of the season.
 
The pitching for the Warriors in the second game was accomplished by committee. Senior Toby Dunlap started the game but not until after he had already recorded some significant accomplishments on another field.
 
After participating in the Senior Day celebration, Dunlap was whisked away from Russ Carr Field by Track and Field head coach Russell Smelley and taken to the hammer throw ring. Westmont Track and Field was conducting a dual meet with Biola and Dunlap was need to gain points for the Warriors. Dunlap, who was wearing his track uniform under his baseball jersey, removed the baseball gear and recorded a personal record throw of 37.94 meters (124-06) to take second place.
 
Next, Dunlap competed at in the shot put where he posted a mark of 15.95 meters (52-4) to not only win the event, but capture an automatic qualification into the NAIA National Outdoor Track and Field Championship next month.
 
Having completed his competition at the Westmont Track, Dunlap returned to the diamond and donned his baseball uniform in time to prepare to take the mound in game two. Dunlap threw two innings, giving up two runs on two hits, striking out one without allowing a walk.
 
Westmont used eight different pitchers in the final game of the series, which was the most closely contested of the four.
 
Morison got the Warriors on the board in the bottom of the fourth with a two-RBI blast to left field. All four of his home runs in the series were with one man aboard.
 
In the top of the second, The Master's evened the score at two with Will Batz scoring on a wild pitch and Smith driving in Tuttle on a sacrifice fly.
 
Another solo home run by Shackelford in the third inning gave The Master's its first lead of the series (3-2), which they extended in the fourth inning on a sacrifice fly by Ryan Bricker that scored Tuttle.
 
Down 4-2, Westmont picked up three runs in the bottom of the fourth to take the lead. Kyle Soria's solo home run down the left field line started things off. Coffey recorded another sacrifice fly, which traveled to deep center field and drove in Stufft.
 
With Tyler Roper on first, Morison tripled down the right field line to give Westmont a 5-4 advantage. The triple was the eighth of the year for the senior and established a new single-season record for Westmont.
 
The Master's tied the game in the fifth with a solo home run by Lepre, then took the lead in the sixth on a bunt single that scored Tuttle.
 
In the bottom of the sixth, an RBI-single by Roper drove in Daniel Netz to tie the game at six runs each. That sent the game into the seventh, which was supposed to be the final inning.
 
Sablock, who had been playing in left, was asked to pitch the seventh inning. He faced four batters and held the Master's scoreless, setting up a potential walk-off situation.
 
In the bottom of the seventh, Westmont found itself with the bases loaded and no outs after Sablock doubled to right, Bush single to second and Leach was intentionally walked. Travis Vander Molen was called upon to pinch hit, but before he could step into the box, The Master's head coach Monte Brooks shuffled his defense into an unusual shift. Brooks brought in Tuttle from left to serve as a fifth infielder, playing directly up the middle.
 
The plan worked well for the Mustangs. Vander Molen hit a ground ball to the third baseman who throw to the plate for the force at home. Lepre then fired on to first to retire Vander Molen. That resulted in men and second and third with two outs. After Stufft was intentionally walked, the Mustangs got out of the inning by striking out Garcia.
 
Andrew Sim pitched the eighth inning for the Warriors and retired the first two batters before giving up a walk and a single to left. The Mustang's hopes of scoring were dashed, however, when Roper made a remarkable catch of a foul ball near the backstop netting to end the threat.
 
The Warriors went fairly quietly in the bottom half of the inning, sending the game to the ninth. Kody McLain (3-0) was called upon to silence the bats of the Mustang's power hitters. Shackelford and Lepre were due up first and second. The duo had already recorded six home runs in the series and had produced 25 and 26 home runs respectively on the season.
 
McLain pitched a one-two-three inning, retiring Shackelford on a ground ball to second and Lepre on a pop up to short before striking out Kameron Quitno. Likewise, the Warriors were retired in order in the bottom half of the inning.
 
McLain returned to the mound for the 10th and once again, retired the side in order.
 
The bottom of the 10th inning saw Stufft receive a lead-off walk, then took second on a sacrifice bunt by Garcia. After Roper was intentionally walked, Coffey ground out to the left side of the infield, advancing Roper and Stufft to second and third respectively.
 
Morison was intentionally walked to produce a force out at every base. That's when Sablock stepped to the plate and drove a one-one pitch into left field to end the game with a walk-off single that scored Stufft from third.
 
McLain was awarded the win after facing the minimum six batters in two innings without allowing a baserunner.
 
The Warriors had entered the day in fifth place, two games behind Arizona Christian at the top of the standings. Before play began, they knew that by day's end they could be anywhere in the standings from tied for first to sole possession of sixth place.
 
As a result of today's GSAC action, Westmont find's itself in third place in the GSAC standings, one game behind Hope International (25-16, 19-9) and two behind Arizona Christian (30-17, 19-7). Westmont stands a game ahead of three teams who are tied for fourth: William Jessup (25-11, 15-9), The Master's (27-13-1, 16-10) and #14 Vanguard (17-11, 30-16).
 
Westmont is not scheduled to play again until April 24 and 25 when it will conclude the GSAC season with four games at Arizona Christian.