By Jacob Norling
May 1, 2021
 
(SANTA BARBARA, Calif.) Westmont (28-20, 20-12 GSAC) had a bittersweet senior day on Saturday, suffering a pair of losses against the visiting Biola Eagles (12-16, 10-13 Pacwest). In game one the Warriors lost 4-3, ending the game with the potential tying and winning-runs aboard. And in game two the Eagles came out swinging and handed the Warriors an 8-4 defeat.
 
In game one the feel-good story of the day was senior Will Anderson. Westmont's left-handed swingman came into the day with some of the most high-leverage innings in program history under his belt, but also with a career long outing of just 4.2 innings.
 
In game one on Saturday, Anderson fired eight innings of three run ball, allowing just one earned run in the contest. The southpaw struck out only one batter, but limited hard contact as has been the story for four years now, and needed only 87 pitches to get through eight frames.
 
Unfortunately, the Warriors bats could not put the finishing touches on an otherwise storybook start and only got Anderson three runs of support to set up a 3-3 tie heading into the ninth.
 
The Eagles generated a run off Carlos Moreno in the top of the ninth to take a 4-3 lead, and in the bottom of the ninth the Warriors were given a cruel reminder that the game does not discriminate even on senior day. With runners and first and second and nobody out, three seniors were due up for the club with a chance to win it. But Matthew Shultz bunted into a force at third base, Devin Perez went down looking, and Lennie Rodriguez grounded out to short to leave a bittersweet taste in the home dugout.
 
"Will's outing doesn't get lost," said Westmont head coach Robert Ruiz. "Nor does Cameron's yesterday. Both Will and Cam stepped up big given we had a few pitchers down this week and they gave us outstanding starts.
 
"It was just really awesome to see the way Will competed today. That's the Will Anderson we know and he was phenomenal. Should we get the chance to compete in the postseason, it's a really good sign to see where he is right now."
 
In game two the bats continued to stay quiet through the first three innings, and Westmont starter Jameson Kruger kept the game knotted at three until things came unglued in the fourth. The Eagles tagged Kruger for five runs in the inning, and a quiet Westmont bench continued to wait for the opportunity to come to life.
 
For a brief moment in the bottom of the sixth the club was able to show some life when Zack Mendez launched a two-run shot to right field to celebrate his senior day. Westmont added a pair on a couple wild pitches in the seventh, but the offense was unable to rally any further, and the Warriors dropped their regular season finale by a score of 8-4.
 
"The word I would use for this season is 'exhausting'," said Ruiz. "And not because anything's gone wrong but just because there's been so much to manage in a time of uncertainty. It's been tiring on our players and on our coaches and I commend our guys for sticking it out.
 
"This isn't a normal season if you look back at decades of college baseball, no one has gone through this. These guys have endured a lot through their four years and they did a great job sticking together and finding a way to compete during this regular season, and now we can turn our focus toward the national tournament and prepare for an opportunity to compete there."
 
Westmont will now await word in the next couple weeks as they hope to be granted an at-large bid into the NAIA Opening Round. Westmont finished the regular season in third place in the GSAC West, behind #9 Vanguard and #13 Hope International.