Six unanswered runs in the third and fourth innings propelled visiting Whitworth (1-0) over Whittier College (0-1) 12-5 in college baseball season opener for both teams on Friday afternoon.
Whittier jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning after Maximus Berber and Mike Hernandez were hit by pitches in back-to-back at bats. An Ian Watanabe single brought home both Berber and Teige Barrett.
Whitworth responded in the top of the second inning when Riley Cissne reached base on an error by the third baseman that scored Brendan Duncan and cut the lead 2-1.
The Poets scored again in the second when James Stirton reached base on an error by the shortstop. He then stole second base and advanced to third on a wild pitch. Dane Goodman walked and then stole second, and Stirton scored on the throw attempt to catch Goodman stealing.
The Pirates went on a scoring run in the third inning, starting with an Aidan Morrison walk. Dawson Warner singled and Morrison reached third, then Jaxsen Sweum hit an RBI double to bring them both home. Gage Gibson singled to score Sweum, and a Cameron Ley single scored Gibson to cap off the third inning, putting Whitworth ahead 4-3.
After Jack Leary held Whitter to a scoreless fourth inning, Morrison was walked for a second time. After a Dawson Warner fly out, Sweum and Duncan were walked back-to-back. Duncan scored on an error to extend the lead and score Morrison, and Colt Corrigan singled to score Sweum, stretching the lead to 7-3.
Stirton singled and then stole second before Goodman reached based on a shortstop error, cutting the Pirate lead 7-4.
Whitworth added one more run to its total in the fifth inning when a Sweum sacrifice fly scored Jacob Doughty.
The Poets tried to rally in the sixth inning, adding a run when Hernandez stole third and then scored on a wild pitch.
The Pirates broke it open in the sixth inning when Cameron Ley scored on a wild pitch, and then a Warner triple scored both Doughty and Cissne. Warner was brought home from third by a wild pitch, widening the lead 12-5.
Starting pitcher Arturo Escandon (0-1) picked up the pitching loss for Whittier, allowing five runs on five hits, two walks, and three strikeouts in 2.2 innings.
Jack Leary (1-0) got the pitching win for the Pirates, allowing four runs on three hits, two walks, and five strikeouts in 4 innings. Gunnar Kuehl and Dillon McCardle combined for only one run allowed and four strikeouts in three innings of relief.
Whitworth travels to Thousand Oaks, California, to play a doubleheader on Saturday, February 5 at 11am and 2pm.
