MCMINNVILLE, Ore. - The Pacific Lutheran University baseball team exploded for 16 hits in the opener, blasting host Linfield University 10-2 but was contained in the nightcap with the Wildcats taking game two by a 3-2 scoreline.
 
In the opener, the Lutes (2-1) wasted little time getting on the scoreboard, pushing across a trio of runs in the top of the first. Cole Trotignon continued where he left off from the day before, belting an RBI double to score Jordan Haworth before an Austin Gormley double allowed Trotignon to score. Connor Lemma blasted a single to center field to score Gormley later in the inning, giving PLU the 3-0 advantage.
 
The host Wildcats (1-2) scored on an error in the bottom of the first but the Lutes' more than answered with Trotignon belting a two-run home run in the third inning. Ashton Barton and Sean Kauffman both went yard in the fourth with solo blasts while Barton, Kauffman, and Tori Doten all drove in runs in the fifth, staking a 10-1 lead. 
 
Linfield scratched across a single run in the sixth to conclude the scoring. 
 
Lemma led the Lutes with three hits in the game while Doten. Trotignon, Bentley, and Kauffman all finished with multiple hits. 
 
Tommy Snyder claimed the win on the hill, striking out eight in six innings of work. Matt Franceschina provided mop up duty in the seventh, closing out the game with one strikeout and allowing no runs. 
 
In game two it was the Wildcats striking first, plating a single run in the first and two more in the second inning. PLU answered in the fifth, whittling the gap to a single run. A Trotignon infield single brought in Doten for the Lutes' opening run before a Lemma RBI fielder's choice brought in Andy Schmitz, closing the gap to just a single run at 3-2. PLU was unable to come any closer, settling for the doubleheader split. 
 
Schmitz finished three-for-four at the plate, finishing a home run shy of the cycle while Kauffman was two-for-two in the game. 
 
Noah Ferguson was saddled with the loss, allowing just two earned runs in four innings of work while striking out six. Spencer Howell and Alex Gregory handled the final three innings, combining for five punchouts.
 
The Lutes and Cats close out their weekend series tomorrow with a single nine-inning game beginning at 11 a.m.