TACOMA, Wash. — Ashton Barton drove in four runs while
Ethan Keintz belted in the go-ahead run in the seventh inning as the Pacific Lutheran University baseball team rallied to win the rubbermatch 12-8 over visiting George Fox University on Sunday at PLU Field.
"It was a total team effort today. It wasn't pretty, but we'll take it," said Head Coach
Nolan Soete.
"Credit to our offense for grinding. We had a big day from Keintz, Barton, and Barber. They really carried us today. I thought Moreno did a good job battling and Adams and Sulya did a nice job on the back end."
The Lutes (9-12, 4-9 NWC) held an early lead but found themselves staring at a one run deficit in the bottom of the sixth inning. Barton came up big in the bottom of the sixth, belting a solo home run to tie the game before PLU opened the floodgates in the seventh, piling on four runs to cement the win and take the weekend series.
Sean Kauffman led off the seventh with a base hit before
Rutger Youch laid down a sacrifice bunt to move Kauffman into scoring position. A Keintz double down the left field line scored Kauffman to put the Lutes ahead 9-8 before getting an RBI single from
Aaron Barber and a two-RBI double from Barton to pad the lead to 12-8. The Lute bullpen held firm the final two innings, yielding no runs to secure the victory.
The Lutes struck first, plating a trio of runs in the first inning. An
Aaron Barber double drove in Keintz for the game's first run before getting RBI singles from Barton and
Braeden Lundberg.
George Fox (8-13, 2-8 NWC) got on the board with a run in the second but PLU quickly answered in the bottom of the frame with a solo home run from Keintz and an RBI double from
Cole Trotignon, putting the home side up 5-1.
GFU chipped into the lead with a pair of runs in the top of the fourth but PLU responded with two of its own on a two-RBI single from Lundberg to build a 7-3 buffer.
The Bruins exploded for five runs in the sixth, taking the lead for the first time all day at 8-7 before the Lutes rallied over the next two innings.
Barton had a big day at the plate, finishing three-for-four with four RBIs while Barber was three-for-five with three runs scored. Keintz scored three runs while driving in two and collecting a pair of hits. In total, the Lutes cranked out 14 hits in the game.
Chris Moreno tossed four innings of long relief, striking out five. Anthomy Adams earned the win, tossing 1 2/3 innings with four strikeouts while
Jake Sulya tossed the final two frames, allowing just one base runner and no hits. As a staff, the Lutes registered nine punchouts on the day.
The Lutes are back on the diamond on Thursday, heading to California to face the University of Redlands.
