By Ron Smith
March 1, 2024
 
(SAN DIEGO, Calif.) Westmont Baseball (9-6-2, 1-1) started PacWest Conference play on Friday with the first two games of a four-game series at Point Loma Nazarene (12-4, 4-2). The Sea Lions were last year's conference champion.
 
The Warriors and Sea Lions split the doubleheader with Westmont winning the first game 3-1 and Point Loma taking the second game 7-6.
 
"That was a game of us playing pitching and defense," said Westmont's head coach Tyler LaTorre of game one. "That has been a recipe for us all year. That first game was exactly what we needed. We had timely hitting."
 
A lead-off home run by Daniel Patterson in the top of the first inning started things off on the right foot for the Warriors. Patterson powered the ball over the left field fence, sending it toward the beach below and the ocean beyond.
 
"DP set a tone for us," reported LaTorre. "That is one of our team goals to score first."
 
The Warriors held on to the resulting 1-0 lead until the bottom of the third. With two away and the bases loaded, the Sea Lions' Esai Santos reached on an infield single, then stole second.  Scott Anderson followed with an RBI-single to right to tie the score at one.
 
That, however, would be the only run allowed by Westmont starting pitcher Bryan Peck. The right-handed junior, who improved to 3-1 on the year, pitched five and two-thirds innings, allowing one run on seven hits. Peck struck out six and walked two.
 
"I thought it was huge for Peck to grind through," noted LaTorre. "He is our number one starter for a reason and he gave us an opportunity to win."
 
Westmont pushed two more runs across in the top of the fourth. With one away, Jaden Mingus reached on an error by Point Loma's third baseman. Mingus advanced to second when Liam Critchett was walked. One out later, Andrew Guidara sent a 3-2 pitch into center field for a single that drove in Mingus and advanced Critchett to second.
 
Next up was Colin Callahan who doubled to right center. Critchett scored from second on the play but Guidara was thrown out at the plate to end the inning. As it turned out, the run was not needed for the victory.
 
"For us to scratch across two runs and then hold them tight was awesome," expressed LaTorre. "For Callahan to have a huge double with two strikes was phenomenal."
 
Peck pitched into the sixth inning before Aidan Holly entered with two outs and a man on first. Holly gave the Warriors two and one-third innings that were both scoreless and hitless. He struck out three and walked two.
 
Lucien Wechsberg started the bottom of the ninth for the Warriors but ran into a bit of trouble. With one away, men on first and second, and a 2-0 count to Santos, Wechsberg gave way to Zach Yates. Yates needed just six pitches to pick up the final two outs of the game. He coaxed Santos to fly out to center, then struck out Anderson on three pitches. As a result, Yates earned his second save of the year.
 
"Holly had a huge bounce back week after a tough outing last week," observed LaTorre. "Yates came in and closed the door for us."
 
In the second game, the Warriors fell behind 4-0 when Point Loma scored one in the bottom of the first and three in the second.
 
However, Westmont closed within a run with three in the top of the fourth. The inning started with back-to-back-to-back singles by Michael Soper, Bryce McFeely and Tanner Beltowski to load the bases. An RBI-ground ball by Finn Snyder, combined with a Point Loma error, allowed both Soper and McFeely to score. Then Callahan singled to right center to drive in Beltowski, making it a 4-3 game.
 
The Sea Lions responded in the bottom half of the fourth with two runs of their own, giving Point Loma a 6-3 advantage. The first came on an RBI-single by Eric Smelko and the second when Smelko scored on a wild pitch.
 
Point Loma added one more run in the bottom of the sixth on a single by Hunter Otjen that scored Jake Entrekin from second. As it turned out, the Sea Lions needed that run.
 
Jack Bollengier led off the top of the seventh inning with a double down the right-field line for his third hit of the game. Then Soper stepped to the plate and pounded the second pitch he saw over the right-field fence to make the score 7-6. One out later, Beltowski singled and subsequently reached second. However, the Warriors were unable to bring him home to tie the game.
 
"We didn't play our best in the second game. We gave away too many free passes," acknowledged LaTorre. "We continued to stay resilient with the bats to keep it close. To have a chance to win late against a team like Point Loma was awesome. We felt like we could have easily won both games, but that's baseball."
 
Weather permitting, the series resumes tomorrow morning at Point Loma's Carroll B. Land Stadium. First pitch is scheduled for 11:00 a.m.