By Ron Smith
February 19, 2024
 
(SANTA BARBARA, Calif.) Westmont Baseball (7-3-1) swept a doubleheader against Cal Poly Pomona (4-4) on Saturday at Russ Carr Field to take three out of four in the series against an NCAA Division II Top-25 ranked team. The Broncos are listed at #24 in the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association's first poll of the season after taking three out of four from Azusa Pacific the week before.
 
The Warriors took the first game 8-3, then beat the Broncos 5-2 in the series finale.
 
"I think it is a testament to our guys' preparation from the start of the season," said Westmont's head coach Tyler LaTorre regarding the weekend's success. "The first weekend, we didn't play like ourselves. Then, we went on our first road trip and took three on the road. Then, we backed it up with three out of four against a perennially-ranked team. That is a testament to our guys always feeling like there is an opportunity to get better.
 
"For the new guys on our team, it provides a sense of belief in the process of what we do every day in practice to get ourselves prepared, and also a belief that we can compete at the Division II level."
 
Cal Poly Pomona is the third ranked team in the NCAA Division II West Region.
 
LaTorre credited his pitching staff and the team's defense for the win, pointing to starters Bryan Peck, Sean Youngerman and Ryan Humphreys. The Westmont defense did not commit a fielding error in the series.
 
"When you have the starting pitching that we had this week, it allows our hitters to break through and score some runs. Then, backing it up with good pitching and good defense, that is a recipe for winning baseball. All we can ask is for guys to play winning baseball. Whether it is a win or a loss in the standings, when we go out and pitch like we are capable of, and play defense like we are capable of, good things happen."
 
In the first game on Saturday, Youngerman picked up his third win of the season in as many starts. The sophomore right-hander allowed one run on seven hits in five innings of work. He struck out eight and allowed just one walk.
 
Joey Rico relieved Youngerman in the sixth, allowing two runs on three hits in one and two-third innings. Lucien Wechsberg earned his second save of the year by closing out the remaining two and one-third innings. Wechsberg held the Broncos scoreless, giving up just one hit and striking out two.
 
"Sean's maturity level has increased since last year," asserted LaTorre. "In his three outings this year, his numbers speak for themselves, but his maturity level is seen in the way he carries himself and the way he responds to things that are out of his control. I have been really proud of the way that he has been dealing with the ups and downs of being a starting pitcher.
 
"He has been able to watch Brian, Chase Goddard and Eric Oseguera to see what it takes to be a starting pitcher. Today, he had to battle. There was traffic on the base pads every single inning. He came up with big pitch after big pitch with guys on base and allowed our offense to continue to put up runs for him. We went to the bullpen with Joey Rico and then sent it off to Lucian at the end. That was important to help us get a good footing going forward."
 
The Warriors got on the board first, pushing across a run in the bottom of the opening frame. With one away, Jack Bollengier walked, then advanced to third on a single up the middle by Michael Soper. Then, a ground ball to second by Bryce McFeely to the right side of the infield allowed Bollengier to score from third.
 
In the top of the second, Liam Critchett doubled down the right field line to lead off the inning. Two outs later, Colin Callahan singled up the middle to drive Critchett home.
 
The Broncos made it a 2-1 game in the top of the third on a sacrifice fly by Jack Sanders that brought in Nick Lugo.
 
The score remained the same until the bottom of the fourth. With two outs, Andrew Guidara and Finn Snyder walked back to back. Then, Callahan singled through the right side to score Guidara and record his second RBI of the game.
 
The Warriors padded their lead in the bottom of the fifth with three more runs. A lead-off double by Bollengier was followed by a single through the left side by Soper, giving the Warriors runners on the corners. The first run scored when McFeely earned his second RBI of the game with a single through the left side. After a passed ball allowed Soper to reach third and McFeely to take second, Trey Dunn delivered a two-RBI single up the middle, making it a 6-1 game.
 
Cal Poly cut the deficit to three when they scored two runs in the top of the seventh. The first came on a sacrifice fly to center field by Brent Cota. The second on a bases-loaded walk to Luc Stuka.
 
In the bottom of the eighth, the Warriors restored their five-run cushion with two runs of their own. With one away, Snyder hit a dribbler to the left of the mound and beat out the throw for an infield single. With Isaac Veal replacing Snyder as a pinch runner, Callahan did exactly the same thing as Snyder, giving the Warriors runners at first and second. A single through the left side by Patterson brought home Veal and moved Callahan to second. One out later, the Warriors' freshman shortstop scored when Soper singled through the right side.
 
Wechsberg returned to the mound in the top of the ninth for the Warriors. After giving up a one-out double, he retired the next two batters to secure the Warriors' win.
 
In the second game, which was slated for seven innings, Humphreys took the mound and picked up his first win since March of 2021. Humphreys experienced an injury and did not play the last half of the 2021 season or any of the 2022 season. He appeared in only eight games in 2023, mostly in relief.
 
"I am really happy with how Humphreys has responded to coming back from an injury and how he pitched today with emotion. To have someone like Humphreys on the mound keeps the guys' effort and energy up. He goes out there and has been really good with minimizing, and making pitches when he needs to, and putting the team in a position to win."
 
The left-hander gave the Warriors five and two-thirds innings, allowing two runs on three hits. He struck out eight and walked five, earning his first win of the year.
 
The Warriors wasted no time getting on the board. Patterson led off the first with a double over the left-fielder's head, then reached third on a wild pitch. An infield single by Bollengier drove in Patterson. Bollengier then reached second when Soper walked, and third when McFeely walked, loading the bases with Warriors.
 
Jaden Mingus hit a ground ball to third, giving the Broncos a chance at an inning-ending double play. However, Mingus hustled down to first and beat the throw. Bollengier scored on the play, giving the Warriors an early 2-0 lead.
 
Like they had in the first game, the Broncos cut the lead to one run in the top of the third. With runners at first and third, Marco Malerba singled to center field, driving in Darius Price.
 
The score remained 2-1 until the bottom of the fifth. With one away, Soper and McFeely walked. One out later Rico, serving as the designated hitter in the second game, tripled to left center, making it a 4-1 ballgame. Next up was freshman catcher Tyler McEvoy who doubled to right center, picking up the first RBI of his collegiate career.
 
In the top of the sixth, a couple of walks ended Humphreys' day. Daniel Patterson moved from third base to the mound and was asked to get the Warriors out of a bit of a jam. Patterson gave up an RBI-single to Price, then struck out Stuka to end the threat.
 
In the top of the seventh, Zach Yates took the mound for the first time this season. The senior, who had been recovering from an injury, was cleared earlier in the week to play. Yates retired the first two batters before giving up a single and a walk. He then convinced Cota to ground out to short to end the game and give the Warriors the win while earning a save.
 
"I am really proud of how Zach has responded and put in the work after not being able to go at the start of the season," said LaTorre. "Today was a testament to his everyday relentless pursuit of being a good teammate and doing everything he could to get back.
 
"Zach has been a stalwart in this bullpen for going on three years. You want Zach Yates to have the ball in his hands when the game is on the line. He has put in a lot of work to get himself back. I am really happy to see him go out there and succeed this weekend."
 
Next Friday and Saturday, the Warriors will take on fellow PacWest member Biola in four non-conference games. The Warriors will play a doubleheader in La Mirada on Friday before hosting the Eagles at Russ Carr Field on Saturday. First pitch is scheduled at 11:00 a.m. on both days.