PARKLAND, Wash. – Kyle Memarian's game-winning home run in the top of the ninth inning moved Whitworth to the brink of clinching the Northwest Conference baseball title in a 5-4 win at Pacific Lutheran on Sunday afternoon.  The Pirates went on to win the non-conference second game of the doubleheader 13-6.

Whitworth (23-14 overall, 17-4 NWC) gets next weekend off before finishing the season with a three-game home series against Whitman on May 2-3.  The Pirates will watch Linfield's series at Puget Sound next weekend.  If the Wildcats (20-13, 12-6 NWC) drop one of the three games, Whitworth will clinch at least a tie for the title and the right to host the 2026 NWC tournament.

The Lutes dropped to 11-18, 8-10 in the NWC.

Game 1 – Whitworth 5, PLU 4
The Pirates led for most of the game until the Lutes scored three runs in the bottom of the eighth to take a 4-3 lead.  Memarian rescued Whitworth with a two-run shot in the top of the ninth for the winning runs.

Memarian got the Bucs on the board in the third with an RBI single.  Yash Gupta added a sacrifice fly in the fourth before Dominic Giusti's run-scoring single in the fifth increased the lead to 3-0.

PLU got one run back in the sixth before Rochne Beecham blasted a three-run home run in the eighth that put the Lutes in position to win their second game of the series. 

Gupta opened the ninth with a double and moved to third on Austin Paul's sacrifice.  Memarian followed with his shot, his second home run of the series and sixth of the season, to put the Pirates back on top. 

Tyler Disch, who came on to strike out the final PLU batter of the eighth inning, hit the first batter of the ninth but then induced a 6-4-3 double play.  Beecham followed with a single and moved into scoring position following a walk to the next batter.  Seth Mahler relieved Disch and struck out Kaleb McNeely to get the one-out save.

Nathaniel Kurano started on the mound for Whitworth and was dominant, allowing only one run on four hits and two walks through six innings.  He struck out two batters.  Disch (2-0) got the win in relief while Mahler picked up his NWC-leading sixth save.

Osei Kimura went seven innings on the mound for PLU, allowing three runs on seven hits and five walks.  Cole Becker (1-2) took the loss in relief.

Memarian finished the game 3 for 5 with three RBIs and a run scored.

Game 2 – Whitworth 13, PLU 6
A team of Pirate back ups was able to knock off the starting unit for the Lutes in the non-conference series finale.

Gupta, starting at shortstop, finished 3-4 as the leadoff hitter and hit his first home run at Whitworth.  He scored three runs.  Tommy Lamb went 2-4 with two triples and four RBIs.  Ryan Boehm also went 2-4 with two RBIs and two runs scored.

Whitworth scored four in the top of the first, including three on Lamb's first triple.  The Pirates led 6-1 before PLU pulled within 7-6 in the fifth.  Boehm's two-run single in the sixth increased the lead back to 9-6.  Whitworth put the game away with four in the top of the ninth.  Lamb had his second RBI triple in the inning and Tristan Butts also had a run-scoring triple.  Brennan Aoki drove in Butts with his first RBI as a Pirate.

Owen Schneider started and threw four innings, allowing two runs on six hits and two walks.  Zach Wright (1-1) got the win with two scoreless innings of relief before Rylan Blair pitched a perfect ninth.