THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. – The Cal Lutheran baseball team rebounded from a tough opener to split Saturday's doubleheader with Willamette at George "Sparky" Anderson Field, falling 6-1 in game one before erupting for a 13-6 victory in game two to secure the series and give head coach Erik Scherer his 100th career win at Cal Lutheran.

The Kingsmen closed out their non-conference schedule with a 15-4 overall record and will now turn their focus fully to SCIAC play beginning next weekend.

GAME ONE: WILLAMETTE 6, CAL LUTHERAN 1
Cal Lu struggled to find offensive rhythm in the opener as the Bearcats limited the Kingsmen to just three hits in the 6-1 decision. The lone Cal Lutheran run came in the second inning when Wes Lynch reached on an error that allowed Jacob Blickenderfer to score.

Willamette answered in the third to tie the game before breaking it open with two runs in the sixth and two more in the seventh, highlighted by a two-run home run from Carter Stoltz.

Oscar Lopez started on the mound for the Kingsmen and worked 5.1 innings, striking out five. Caleb Wilson and David Zambelli combined to finish the game in relief.

Blickenderfer, Lynch, and Philip Jeong accounted for Cal Lutheran's three hits in the contest.

GAME TWO: CAL LUTHERAN 13, WILLAMETTE 6
The Kingsmen quickly flipped the script in game two, delivering their most productive offensive performance of the weekend in a 13-6 win.

After three scoreless innings, Cal Lu erupted for seven runs in the fourth to seize control. Lucas Danielewicz started the rally with an RBI double before Jacob Blickenderfer followed with another double to extend the lead. Daniel Orozco added an RBI single later in the inning, and the Kingsmen capitalized on multiple Willamette errors to push the advantage to 7-0.

The Bearcats trimmed the deficit with two runs in the fifth and three more in the sixth, but Cal Lutheran continued to answer offensively.

Troy Anderson delivered a two-run single in the fifth to extend the lead to 9-2, and the Kingsmen piled on four more runs in the sixth. Blickenderfer drove in two more with a single up the middle before Orozco doubled down the left field line to bring home another run. Anderson capped the inning with an RBI single to make it 13-5.

Blickenderfer led the offensive surge, finishing 2-for-5 with four RBIs and three runs scored. Orozco added two hits and two RBIs, while Anderson went 2-for-4 with three RBIs. Brady Werther also contributed two hits and an RBI in the win.

Justin Gottlieb earned the victory on the mound after striking out one over five innings of work. Ryan Jung, Colten Hanson, and Matt Campo combined to close out the game.

With the win, the Kingsmen secured the series victory over the Bearcats and celebrated a milestone for their head coach, as Scherer reached 100 career wins at the helm of the Cal Lutheran program.

UP NEXT
Cal Lutheran will return to action on Friday, March 20, when the Kingsmen jump back into SCIAC play against Occidental at "Sparky" Anderson. First pitch is scheduled for 3 p.m. before the series concludes with a doubleheader in Los Angeles on Saturday.