The Puget Sound baseball team finished off their 2013 season with a doubleheader this weekend on Saturday, May 4 against Northwest Conference rivals Whitman and Pacific.
Since these two games were the last for the Loggers, both were considered important wins. Overall, the Loggers were relatively successful the majority of their season, heading into their final matchup with a record of 17-23 overall and 11-13 in their conference.
The first game started against Whitman and senior pitcher Matt Robinson (Lafeyette, Calif.) was on the mound. Early in the game sophomore Kaulana Smith (Kapolei, Hawaii) brought home freshman JB Eary (Las Vegas, Nev.) for the game’s first run in the first inning.
However, Whitman soon came back by scoring two runs in the second inning bringing the score 2-1. These two teams stayed close together for the rest of the game, until Whitman scored another run taking the 3-1 lead.
Senior Stephen Kelsey (Seattle, Wash.) was able to score one more run for the Loggers in the seventh inning on an error from Whitman, making the score 3-2. The Loggers were not able to score again for the rest of the game, but managed to keep Whitman from scoring as well, ending the game with a final score of 3-2 and taking the loss.
Robinson finished his season with one of the best pitching careers in Logger history. He went seven innings against Whitman and only allowed three runs and struck out five batters.
When the final game for the Logger season started against Pacific, it was apparent that the Loggers were determined to win the game from the beginning. Senior Nate Aguiar (Los Gatos, Calif.) took the mound for the Loggers ending his career as a pitcher.
Pacific scored the first run on an error by the Loggers in the first, but the Loggers quickly responded. They scored four runs in the fourth inning against Pacific, taking the lead.
The Loggers continued to score more runs in the next inning, taking their lead 7-1 over Pacific. Even during the times when Pacific had the bases loaded, the Logger defense kept them from scoring.
However, the Loggers scored two more runs in the seventh inning, making their lead 9-1. Pacific attempted to score several more runs, but it was not enough to close the gap between the score deficit. The Loggers took their final game of the season and ended with a 9-4 win.
Aguiar was able to end his career with a win against Pacific. He went on to retire 14 batters that he faced early in the game, and had four strikeouts.
Senior Zach LaBorde (Longmont, Colo.) came in as the closer for the game against Pacific. His final two innings on the mound solidified the Loggers’ win and his Logger career.
Overall, the Loggers finish their season six games below .500, good for sixth in the NWC.
It was a successful weekend and 2013 season for the Loggers. Although they are losing four strong seniors this year, the Loggers will be returning starters to seven positions next year, and could come back just as powerful.
Indeed, the Loggers can look forward to strong performances from returning players, including junior Lucas Stone (Ashland, Ore.) who led the team with a Batting Average of .356 while posting a 2.41 Earned Run Average as a pitcher.
Indeed, he should be even better than ever as he moves into his final season, as he and the rest of the team attempts to move up in the Northwest Conference.
