Box Score TYLER, Texas – The 2015 Whitworth University baseball season came to an end with a 10-3 loss to the University of La Verne at the NCAA Division III West Regional tournament in Tyler, Texas on Friday morning.
The Pirates finish the season 28-15. The Leopards (26-18), now 2-0 in the regional, used a pair of four-run rallies to pull away for the win. They advance in the winners' bracket to face either MIllsaps or Trinity.
Whitworth was the team that jumped to an early lead. Jeremy Druffel singled with one out in the bottom of the first inning and came around to score on Matt Nelson's sacrifice fly.
Meanwhile starting pitcher Spencer Ansett cruised through the first three innings, allowing only an infield single through the first three frames. But La Verne got to Ansett in the fourth, scoring four runs on five hits. Jared Hovsepian, Nolan Henley and Zach Quinones all had RBI singles in the inning.
The Pirate bats were held silent by Leopard starter Javi Iniguez until a brief rally in the bottom of the sixth inning. With one out and JT Phelan at first base, Thomas Wakem doubled to left-center field to put runners on second and third. Nick Motsinger followed with an RBI single that scored Phelan and Garret Hughes added a sacrifice fly that drove in Wakem. Reliever Alex Bernstein struck out Skyler Lookabill with the potential tying runs on base.
Then La Verne used its second four-run rally to put the game away in the top of the seventh. The big blow was Henley's two-run single to right field. It appeared that Phelan had the ball lined up for a catch, but he slipped on the wet turf. Two more errors allowed two other runs to score.
The Leopard scored another unearned run in the eighth after a throwing error allowed runners to advance to second and third. A Jacob Thomas fielder's choice drove in the 10th run.
Ansett fell to 5-2 this season after he allowed four runs on six hits in 3.2 innings. Carson Blumenthal pitched the final five innings and allowed five runs (three earned) on six hits.
Iniquez improved to 8-3 for La Verne after allowing three runs on nine hits in 5.1 innings. Bernstein shut down Whitworth with 3.2 innings of hitless relief to pick up the save.
Druffel and Motsinger had two hits apiece for the Pirates.
It was also the final game for Whitworth head coach Dan Ramsay, who will head to Washington State University as the Director of Baseball Operations.
