EAGLE ROCK, Calif. – No. 23 Cal Lutheran baseball did exactly what it has come to be known for on Saturday afternoon, responding in a big way.
After dropping the series opener, the Kingsmen punched back with authority, piling up runs in the doubleheader sweep at Occidental with a 17-3 run-rule victory, followed by an 11-9 win to secure the series.
With the pair of wins, Cal Lu improves to 17-5 overall and 5-1 in SCIAC play, sitting at first place in the conference standings.
GAME ONE: CAL LUTHERAN 17, OCCIDENTAL 3 (8 INN.)
CLU wasted no time setting the tone in game one, scoring in the first inning on an RBI single from
Daniel Orozco before a solo home run from
Lucas Danielewicz in the third made it 2-0.
The Kingsmen continued to apply pressure with steady production through the middle innings, breaking things open with a four-run fifth inning highlighted by a two-run double from
Wes Lynch.
The offense exploded from there, as Cal Lutheran piled up runs with five in both the sixth and seventh innings, capitalizing on timely hitting and Oxy miscues to blow the game wide open.
Philip Jeong delivered a three-RBI double in the seventh to cap the scoring, pushing the Kingsmen to a 17-3 advantage and securing the run-rule victory.
The Kingsmen totaled 14 hits in the opener, with Danielewicz leading the way with three hits, 2 RBIs, and a run scored. Lynch, Orozco, Jeong, and
Troy Anderson also delivered both multi-hit and multi-RBI games.
On the mound,
Oscar Lopez had a strong outing, allowing just one run over five innings while striking out three to earn the win.
Aidan Buntich closed out the victory in relief, striking out three more.
GAME TWO: CAL LUTHERAN 11, OCCIDENTAL 9
The nightcap brought more of the same offensive firepower, but with a little more drama.
Cal Lu jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in the first inning behind RBIs from Danielewicz and Jeong, but the Tigers answered with six runs across the second and third innings to take a 6-4 lead.
Once again, the Kingsmen responded.
Jacob Blickenderfer tied things up with a two-run home run in the third, and in the fourth inning, Orozco delivered the biggest swing of the day with a three-run homer to put CLU back in front, 7-6.
The Kingsmen continued to add on, scoring three more in the fifth inning with Orozco driving in two and Lynch adding another RBI to extend the lead to 10-6.
Oxy refused to go away, pulling within two runs late, but Cal Lutheran's bullpen held firm down the stretch to secure the 11-9 win and complete the Saturday sweep.
The Kingsmen racked up 19 hits in game two, with Orozco leading the charge with four hits and five RBIs. Jeong and
Jona Dawson added three hits each, while four more Kingsmen recorded multi-hit performances in the win.
UP NEXT
Cal Lutheran will look to carry its momentum into next weekend's SCIAC series against Chapman. The Kingsmen will travel to Orange on Friday, March 27 for a 3 p.m. first pitch before returning home on Saturday, March 28 to complete the series.
