TACOMA, Wash. - The Pacific Lutheran University baseball team returns back home this weekend as they take on Northwest Conference rival Lewis & Clark College in a four-game series.

Last weekend the Lutes (12-5, 4-2 NWC) traveled across town to battle the University of Puget Sound in a three-game series last weekend. The Lutes took the Battle of the South Sound, winning two out of the three games against the Loggers. The Lutes took the first and second games 11-9 and 6-5 in tightly contested games, before falling in the final game 6-5 in another close finish.

"Every game from the UPS series was hard fought and it could have easily gone the other way," said freshman Michael Cesar. "I think the most important thing to take from this series into the next is to never undervalue an opponent. Our coach has been on us all season about how any team in this conference can beat any other team, so going into this weekend and taking each game pitch by pitch is key to success."

Cesar is really taking advantage of his playing time as a freshman, as he hit an important home run in the third game of the series to give the Lutes a chance to comeback in the end.

"It felt amazing off the bat and rounding third base to see an entire team that was just excited as I was, was incredible and reminded me of why I love the game. Then just the next inning, to have Gormley do the same thing and know exactly how he felt was pretty special. Unfortunately, the game didn't end our way but that at-bat was a great confidence boost for the weeks to come."

Cesar is really embracing his opportunities, and definitely putting in the work on and off the field to enable these opportunities to occur.

"Transitioning from high school to college was challenging and exciting in a lot of different ways. Academics and athletics demand more than they ever have in high school and finding that balance is a challenge. If you ask any of my teammates, I'm doing homework if I'm not on the baseball field. On the other hand, I always wanted to play college baseball and I'm finally here doing it. Reminding myself about that every day keeps me focused and I can enjoy all the hard work we're putting in."

In terms of academics, Cesar is a biology (pre-med) major, with plans somewhere in the medical field and hopefully incorporate that with sports.

"Honestly, biology was my favorite class in high school and both of my parents worked at a hospital so as of right now my interest is a combination of the two."

In his spare time, Cesar has many hobbies and activities that he is involved in and enjoys.

"Outside of school and baseball, I love to get outdoors. Anytime I can go on a hike, a walk at the beach, or camping for the weekend I'll take it. I also love to snowboard and play volleyball."

Cesar and the time are embracing this strong start to the season, and looking to continue their winning form as they return to play Lewis & Clark this season.

"This season I'm most looking forward to finding our potential as a team and achieving the goals we set at the beginning of the season. We're so close and we've been steadily getting better every day and we hope to do so throughout the season."

The Lutes will return home to face-off against Lewis & Clark in a four-game series this upcoming weekend. The first three games will be NWC contests with the final game of the series a non-conference game.

Mar. 16: PLU vs. Lewis & Clark (DH) at PLU Field (12 p.m.)
Mar. 17: PLU vs. Lewis & Clark (DH) at PLU Field (11 a.m.)

Series History: The Lutes and Pioneers have met 118 times since the 1980 season with PLU holding a sizeable 78-40 advantage in the all-time series. PLU has won six straight, including a sweep of last season's series. 

About the Pioneers: Lewis & Clark (1-14, 0-9 NWC) opened up March with a 4-3 extra innings win over Oregon Institute of Technology but has come up empty handed since, getting swept by NWC rivals Willamette University and George Fox University. 

Last week's series against the Bruins saw GFU racked up 42 runs over the three games with the tightest contest a 9-1 Bruin win to close the series.

Cole Petters is the Pios top hitter with a .438 batting average with six RBIs. Speedster Matt Donovan has six stolen bases and a team-high seven RBIs and nine runs scored.

Dominic Monozon has seen the most action on the mound, pitching 28 2/3 innings while Robert Reaser boasts a team-high 22 strikeouts.