HILLSBORO, Ore. – Four pitchers combined to limit Pacific to one run and the PLU offense scored two in the eighth inning to help seal the game as the 17th-ranked Pacific Lutheran baseball team defeated the Boxers 3-1 Saturday evening at Ron Tonkin Field.

The win marks the first for PLU this season and the first for the Lutes under head coach Nolan Soete. PLU will look to close out the weekend trip to Oregon with another win when the Lutes visit Linfield Sunday at 5 p.m.

"Today's win was a true team effort," PLU head coach Nolan Soete said. "We had guys come off the bench in pressure situations, and they all performed well. We played great defense, and the bullpen threw five innings of two-hit baseball."

Cory Nelson started on the mound for the Lutes and pitched four innings of shutout baseball. Kyle Kornegay stepped in to pitch 3.1 innings in relief, claiming the win for his first in a PLU uniform. Leif Hansen picked up four outs and Cole Johnson recorded the final out on the mound for his first save as a Lute. Johnson came in with runners on second and third and two outs in the bottom of the ninth and induced a groundout to second to clinch the win.

On offense, Drew Oord reached base four times and scored twice, as he finished the day 1-for-1 to go with two walks and a hit-by-pitch. Ben Welch and Johnson each picked up a pair of hits for the Lutes, while Welch, Frank Airey and Connor Cantu all drove in a run.

PLU broke the scoreless tie in the top of the sixth inning. Oord led off with a bases-loaded walk and advanced to second on a Pacific error. Casey Dawes pinch hit and hit an infield single that advanced Oord to third, where Cantu brought him home with a sacrifice fly. The Lutes tacked on two more in the top of the eighth, with Oord again starting the rally. This time the PLU first baseman doubled to center and advanced to third on a sacrifice bunt. Cantu walked, and Welch singled to make it 2-0 Lutes and put runners at first and third. Airey followed with a fielder's choice that scored Cantu from third with PLU's final run of the day.

Pacific got one run back in the bottom of the eighth, following a pair of walks with an RBI single. A play at the plate ended the inning for the Lutes, and they held off the Boxers' ninth-inning rally attempt for the win.