By Ron Smith
April 30, 2019
 
(IRVINE, Calif.) Less than 24 hours after defeating The Master's (33-16-1) in an extra-inning Golden State Athletic Conference Baseball Tournament game that lasted five hours and 45 minutes, #22 Westmont (35-13) had trouble keeping pace with William Jessup (35-10), the tournament's top seed. Westmont lost the battle of the Warriors 11-2 and as a result fell into the tournament's loser bracket.
 
Tomorrow, the Warriors will meet for a rematch with The Master's at 2:00 p.m. in an elimination game. The Mustangs staved off eliminate today by defeating Arizona Christian 7-6. Trailing 6-5 going into the bottom of the ninth, Aaron Shakelford delivered a walk-off single to right, driving in two runs and making the Firestorm the first team to exit the tournament.
 
If Westmont prevails against The Master's, they will play another elimination game at 6:00 p.m. – this one a rematch with William Jessup. Jessup lost the late game tonight to Hope International. The Royals prevailed 8-6 in a match-up of the tournament's only remaining undefeated teams.
 
If Westmont also defeats William Jessup tomorrow, they will need to defeat Hope International twice on Thursday to claim the GSAC Championship.
 
In today's game, Westmont struck first by scoring a single run in the top of the second. Isaiah Leach led off the inning with a walk, then reached third when Kyle Soria singled to left center. An RBI-single to right by Alex Stufft drove in Leach for the game's first run.
 
Westmont errors led to an unearned run scored by Jessup in the third inning and again in the fourth. In the sixth, Jessup added a run on an RBI-triple by Kawaiola Takemura, who later scored on a wild pitch.
 
The big blow came in the bottom of the seventh when Will Law hit a grand slam over the right field fence to make the score 8-1. The following inning, Austen Swift connected for a three-run shot to center.
 
With two outs in the top of the ninth, the Warriors mounted a bit of a rally. Pinch hitter Lucas Still received a four-pitch walk and then reached third with Taylor Garcia doubled. Tyler Roper drove in Still with a single to center to make the score 11-2, but that was all the Warriors would score.
 
Cory Dawson (7-4) took the loss for the Warriors, He allowed six runs (four earned) on seven hits, struck out seven and walked three.