THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. — Cal Lutheran baseball was defeated by Middlebury twice on Saturday, as the Panthers took the series from the Kingsmen. Middlebury won game one, 6-4, and then game two, 10-0.
Luke Wechsler started game one on the mound. He pitched for five innings and faced 24 batters. He allowed seven hits and five runs, while striking out six.
The Kingsmen and Panthers stayed neck-and-neck through the first three innings with the score tied 2-2. Kyle Reuser and Sean Blandino both recorded a RBI. The Panthers managed to sneak ahead with one run in the top of the fourth and added two more in the fifth.
Cameron Cooper was next on the mound as he pitched for one inning. He allowed one run and had two strikeouts. He was relieved by Dean Olsson, who pitched for two innings. He didn't allow any runs or hits, and recorded two strikeouts.
The Panthers were able to score once more at the top of the seventh inning and went up 6-2. The Kingsmen fought hard, but were unable to score any more runs through the eighth inning.
The bullpen continued for the Kingsmen as Bryan Tierney was next on the mound. He pitched for 0.1 innings and got one strikeout. He was followed by Max Kendall as he pitched 0.2 innings with one strikeout.
The Kingsmen attempted a late comeback as they scored two runs at the bottom of the ninth. Jalen Parks doubled down the left field line, scoring Blandino, and Josh Quinn scored on a passed ball. With runners on second and third, the Kingsmen had a chance, but a groundout ended the game.
John Frazier took to the mound in game two. He pitched 4.2 innings and faced 20 batters. He allowed five hits and five runs, with four strikeouts. He was followed by Clay Rickerman and he pitched for 1.2 innings. He gave up two hits and three runs, with two strikeouts.
The Panthers came out strong as they managed to score one run in the first inning. The Kingsmen prevented the Panthers from scoring for the following three innings, but were also unable to put any points on the board. Middlebury found an opening in the Kingsmen defense at the top of the fifth inning as they scored four more runs, bringing their lead to 5-0.
Milan Bugarin was next on the mound as he faced three batters. He allowed three hits and two runs. He was relieved by Tristan Dupont who pitched 0.2 innings, striking out both batters.
The Kingsmen entered another standstill with the Panthers for the sixth inning. The Panthers managed to pull farther ahead in the top of the seventh inning as they scored five more runs. The Kingsmen landed their own hits, but were unable to bring any runners home.
Dupont was relieved by Gregory Pimentel for the eighth inning. He allowed one hit and had one strikeout. The final pitcher was Kyle Johnson. He pitched for one inning, giving up just one hit. Neither team was able to score in the final two innings as the Panthers took the win.
The Kingsmen jump back into conference for their next series. Cal Lutheran hosts Occidental on Friday at 3 p.m.
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