Articles and Commentary
UBC 4, Point Loma Nazarene 3
- Details
- Published on Tuesday, 19 February 2008 09:18
- Written by Administrator
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An excellent effort in a close game against a good team.
The star of this show was starter Taylor King. His numbers were three earned runs on five hits in seven innings, five strikeouts, and two bases on balls. This only tells a small part of the story. The Sea Lions didn't get their second hit of the game until the sixth inning (by Tyler Kuehl), and King promptly picked off the pinch runner who replaced Kuehl. King then gave up a single, and a home run by Kaohi Downing, which made the score 3-2 for the Birds. King responded by striking out the next two batters (the second and third in the batting order) to end the inning.
King's only real lapse came in the seventh. The Sea Lions got a runner to third with a walk, a bunt, and a ground out. King balked him in to tie the game at 3-3. A bunt single and a stolen base by Nick Fox, followed by another balk, put the go-ahead run on third, but King got a ground out to get out of the inning.
The Thunderbirds got the winning run in the top of the eighth. They loaded the bases on singles by Scott Webster, Nic Lendvoy, and Mike Styrna. Steve Bone then drew a walk to score Craig Leebosh, who came in to pinch-run for Webster.
Ashton Florko came on in relief in the eighth, and retired the Sea Lions in order. Andrew LaFleur pitched a perfect ninth inning to preserve the one-run win.
The Thunderbirds took the early lead in the second with a home run by Webster. Their second run came in the fifth when Styrna reached on a bunt single, went to second on a wild pitch, to third on a ground out, then scored on an error. Another run came in the sixth on singles by Webster and Lendvoy, followed by another error.
Webster was the offensive star, 3-4 and the home run. Kevin Craik got the loss for the Sea Lions. Downing finished 2-4.