The Logger baseball team faced off against Pacific University in Forest Grove, Ore. on Friday, Apr. 18. The Loggers were in impressive form as they won both games against the Boxers on the back of the first complete shutout by a Logger pitcher since 2006 in game one and an impressive offensive comeback in the second game.
Junior Steve Wagar (Yakima, Wash.) held the Boxers scoreless, only allowing four hits while striking out seven batters. The full game shutout was the first since Logger alumnus Taylor Thompson faced off against Whitman in April of 2006. The stellar performance by Wagar was accompanied by two personal achievements for the junior pitcher. Alongside the shutout, he pitched the full nine innings and only allowed four Boxer batters to take hits off of him.
There was only ever one Boxer runner on-base and not a single runner made it past second base all game long.
Logger batters converted on four of 11 hits to seal the deal on the back of Wagar’s stellar pitching. The first run came in the fourth inning when senior Christian Carter (San Diego, Calif.) cracked a triple to the middle of the park, bringing home sophomore Nathan Backes (Seattle, Wash.) in the process. Sophomore Nick Funyak made it 2-0 Loggers as he followed Carter’s triple with a well-struck double to left field that brought Carter home. Senior Addison Meltzer (Portland, Ore.) allowed Funyak to progress to third, and sophomore J.B. Eary (Las Vegas, Nav.) sacrificed his chance to run the bases to bring home Funyak and make the Logger lead 3-0.
The final run of the game came from the Loggers in the seventh inning, making the final score 4-0 for the visiting team. Senior Connor Savage (Bothell, Wash.) put himself on base with a solid hit to center field. He advanced to third base off a ground out and pitch gone wrong, and scored on the next play when senior Jeff Walton (Carmichael, Calif.) made his RBI count 13 for the season with a single to center field. Savage was the leader of the hit-parade for the Loggers, connecting on three of five attempts, while Funyak had a run of his own and an RBI with two hits and a walk.
Game two was much more of a contested affair, as the home team took the lead with runs in the first, third, and fourth innings. The Loggers weren’t giving up easily though, getting on the board with the sacrifice play from Walton, cutting the Boxer lead to two runs. The home team, looking calm, quickly extended their lead in the next inning with two more runs. A Pacific pitcher was punished for an illegal action he made and brought in Walton for the Logger’s second run of the game, but the home team quickly recovered and scored two more runs to bring a 7-2 lead into the eighth inning.
In desperate need of runs, the Loggers exploded out of the gates in the eighth inning, scoring six runs in seven at-bats to take the lead at 8-7. Sophomore Chris Zerio (Pleasanton, Calif.) kicked off the impressive comeback with a hard hit double down the left field line. The bases were loaded on the sophomore’s impressive hit, allowing him to bring home classmate Nickolas Alarico (Honolulu, Hawaii) and senior Carter. Walton was next up to bat and his utility was well voiced as he singled to left field and brought in Zerio and Savage to score. Three at-bats later, Funyak hit a fireball to left center that brought home Backes and junior Eric Lund (Tacoma, Wash.) that ended the prolific inning for the Loggers.
Freshman closer Kian Kurokawa (Hilo, Hawaii) came on at the bottom of the eighth to tidy up the game for the visiting team. Zerio gave Kurokawa some breathing room in the ninth inning, when his single to center field brought home Savage to make the Logger lead 9-7. Things looked nervous as Kurokawa walked the Boxers lead-off hitter but he kept his resolve and retired the next three batters in the Boxer line-up to close out the impressive come-from-behind victory for the Loggers. With the save, Kurokawa is now tied for the most saves in a single season in the history of Puget Sound baseball.
Savage and Zerio had the most hits in game two, both players tallying three a piece. Savage extended his streak, making it nine games with at least one hit and the longest active streak on the team. Zerio and Walton led the RBI category with three a piece while Funyak was close on their heels with two of his own.
The Logger baseball team faced off against Pacific University in Forest Grove, Ore. on Friday, Apr. 18. The Loggers were in impressive form as they won both games against the Boxers on the back of the first complete shutout by a Logger pitcher since 2006 in game one and an impressive offensive comeback in the second game.
Junior Steve Wagar (Yakima, Wash.) held the Boxers scoreless, only allowing four hits while striking out seven batters. The full game shutout was the first since Logger alumnus Taylor Thompson faced off against Whitman in April of 2006. The stellar performance by Wagar was accompanied by two personal achievements for the junior pitcher. Alongside the shutout, he pitched the full nine innings and only allowed four Boxer batters to take hits off of him.
There was only ever one Boxer runner on-base and not a single runner made it past second base all game long.
Logger batters converted on four of 11 hits to seal the deal on the back of Wagar’s stellar pitching. The first run came in the fourth inning when senior Christian Carter (San Diego, Calif.) cracked a triple to the middle of the park, bringing home sophomore Nathan Backes (Seattle, Wash.) in the process. Sophomore Nick Funyak made it 2-0 Loggers as he followed Carter’s triple with a well-struck double to left field that brought Carter home. Senior Addison Meltzer (Portland, Ore.) allowed Funyak to progress to third, and sophomore J.B. Eary (Las Vegas, Nav.) sacrificed his chance to run the bases to bring home Funyak and make the Logger lead 3-0.
The final run of the game came from the Loggers in the seventh inning, making the final score 4-0 for the visiting team. Senior Connor Savage (Bothell, Wash.) put himself on base with a solid hit to center field. He advanced to third base off a ground out and pitch gone wrong, and scored on the next play when senior Jeff Walton (Carmichael, Calif.) made his RBI count 13 for the season with a single to center field. Savage was the leader of the hit-parade for the Loggers, connecting on three of five attempts, while Funyak had a run of his own and an RBI with two hits and a walk.
Game two was much more of a contested affair, as the home team took the lead with runs in the first, third, and fourth innings. The Loggers weren’t giving up easily though, getting on the board with the sacrifice play from Walton, cutting the Boxer lead to two runs. The home team, looking calm, quickly extended their lead in the next inning with two more runs. A Pacific pitcher was punished for an illegal action he made and brought in Walton for the Logger’s second run of the game, but the home team quickly recovered and scored two more runs to bring a 7-2 lead into the eighth inning.
In desperate need of runs, the Loggers exploded out of the gates in the eighth inning, scoring six runs in seven at-bats to take the lead at 8-7. Sophomore Chris Zerio (Pleasanton, Calif.) kicked off the impressive comeback with a hard hit double down the left field line. The bases were loaded on the sophomore’s impressive hit, allowing him to bring home classmate Nickolas Alarico (Honolulu, Hawaii) and senior Carter. Walton was next up to bat and his utility was well voiced as he singled to left field and brought in Zerio and Savage to score. Three at-bats later, Funyak hit a fireball to left center that brought home Backes and junior Eric Lund (Tacoma, Wash.) that ended the prolific inning for the Loggers.
Freshman closer Kian Kurokawa (Hilo, Hawaii) came on at the bottom of the eighth to tidy up the game for the visiting team. Zerio gave Kurokawa some breathing room in the ninth inning, when his single to center field brought home Savage to make the Logger lead 9-7. Things looked nervous as Kurokawa walked the Boxers lead-off hitter but he kept his resolve and retired the next three batters in the Boxer line-up to close out the impressive come-from-behind victory for the Loggers. With the save, Kurokawa is now tied for the most saves in a single season in the history of Puget Sound baseball.
Savage and Zerio had the most hits in game two, both players tallying three a piece. Savage extended his streak, making it nine games with at least one hit and the longest active streak on the team. Zerio and Walton led the RBI category with three a piece while Funyak was close on their heels with two of his own.
The Loggers looked to complete their second season sweep of a team in the third game, having taken the first two in an impressive fashion. The Loggers ended up breaking through and winning away from home against the Boxers 9-4.
The home team were the first ones on the board with an early run in the first inning, but the Loggers weren’t to be outdone as they added two of their own in the third inning. Zerio continued his effective hitting as, with two outs on the board, he singled to the left of the mound to bring home sophomore Alex Sierra (Pasadena, Calif.) for the first run of the game for the visitors. The next at-bat involved some crafty play from the Logger base runners when both Zerio and Savage stole bases to advance. An error from the Boxer catcher allowed Savage to score and give the visitors the lead at 2-1.
The Loggers pulled ahead even further with a run in the fifth inning and five runs in the sixth inning. Savage started the derby when his single to center field brought home two runners from loaded bases. Zerio was next at bat and not to be outdone by his teammate, brought home Savage and Alarcio with a vicious double to left of center field. Carter trotted in for the ninth and final run of the game in the seventh inning, making the Logger lead 9-1.
Pacific wasn’t going down without a fight, as they scored three runs in the final frame of the seventh inning. The Loggers trotted out a pair of stalwart pitchers in freshmen Kurokawa and Chris Moreno (Novato, Calif.) to slam the door closed on any comeback from the Boxers. The two freshmen combined to only allow four hits and not a single run was in sight for the home team. The starting pitcher, senior Lucas Stone (Ashland, Ore.), earned a win on the stat sheet for himself with six innings pitched. The senior starter only allowed one run and retired eight batters in the process.
The Loggers haven’t dropped a game in the last six outings and are one win away from equaling the longest streak since 2008. During this winning run of form, the Loggers are averaging four runs more than their season average of 4.2 and hitting with an average of .339 and an on base percentage of .410. The pitching is in no way being carried by the offense as their combined ERA is 2.83 and their strikeout total is the phenomenal number of 40 during this winning streak.
The Loggers looks to continue their winning ways with a mid-week game against Saint Martin’s on Apr. 22. Opening pitch is set for 3:00 p.m. at Saint Martin’s home field in Lacey, Wash.
The Loggers looked to complete their second season sweep of a team in the third game, having taken the first two in an impressive fashion. The Loggers ended up breaking through and winning away from home against the Boxers 9-4.
The home team were the first ones on the board with an early run in the first inning, but the Loggers weren’t to be outdone as they added two of their own in the third inning. Zerio continued his effective hitting as, with two outs on the board, he singled to the left of the mound to bring home sophomore Alex Sierra (Pasadena, Calif.) for the first run of the game for the visitors. The next at-bat involved some crafty play from the Logger base runners when both Zerio and Savage stole bases to advance. An error from the Boxer catcher allowed Savage to score and give the visitors the lead at 2-1.
The Loggers pulled ahead even further with a run in the fifth inning and five runs in the sixth inning. Savage started the derby when his single to center field brought home two runners from loaded bases. Zerio was next at bat and not to be outdone by his teammate, brought home Savage and Alarcio with a vicious double to left of center field. Carter trotted in for the ninth and final run of the game in the seventh inning, making the Logger lead 9-1.
Pacific wasn’t going down without a fight, as they scored three runs in the final frame of the seventh inning. The Loggers trotted out a pair of stalwart pitchers in freshmen Kurokawa and Chris Moreno (Novato, Calif.) to slam the door closed on any comeback from the Boxers. The two freshmen combined to only allow four hits and not a single run was in sight for the home team. The starting pitcher, senior Lucas Stone (Ashland, Ore.), earned a win on the stat sheet for himself with six innings pitched. The senior starter only allowed one run and retired eight batters in the process.
The Loggers haven’t dropped a game in the last six outings and are one win away from equaling the longest streak since 2008. During this winning run of form, the Loggers are averaging four runs more than their season average of 4.2 and hitting with an average of .339 and an on base percentage of .410. The pitching is in no way being carried by the offense as their combined ERA is 2.83 and their strikeout total is the phenomenal number of 40 during this winning streak.
The Loggers looks to continue their winning ways with a mid-week game against Saint Martin’s on Apr. 22. Opening pitch is set for 3:00 p.m. at Saint Martin’s home field in Lacey, Wash.
