LACEY, Wash. – Five pitchers combined to allow just one run over 17 innings of work for the Western Oregon University baseball team as they swept a doubleheader at Saint Martin's on Wednesday in Great Northwest Athletic Conference action. WOU rolled to the shutout in the opener behind six strong innings from Mike Peterson for the 4-0 win and then Arturo Alvarez tossed seven innings to get the extra inning victory in game two by a score of 2-1.
Peterson moved to 3-0 on the season with his six shutout innings. The right-hander allowed just three hits and two walks, while striking out four. Sebasten Boivin tossed a scoreless seventh before Matthew Dunaway closed it out over the final two innings, striking out four.
In game two, Alvarez improved to 7-0 on the season working seven strong innings, allowing just one run on four hits and a walk. He added eight strikeouts. Bryce Bond pitched a 1-2-3 eighth for his second save of the season, adding a pair of strikeouts.
WOU (30-16, 20-10 GNAC) scored the only run they would need in game one in the first inning. Justyn Herzog ripped a one-out triple to center and then scored when Derek Maiben singled through the left side for the early 1-0 lead.
Peterson worked around his only jam of the game in the home half of the first. With two on and one out, Peterson tallied a pop out and a fielder's choice out to retire the side.
The Wolves added another run in the third. Jacob Maiben started things off with a single through the left side. Herzog added a single to right and a fielding error by the right fielder moved Jacob Maiben to third. A fielder's choice out cut down the run at home, but Logan Ho cashed in with an RBI sacrifice fly to right to bring in Herzog for the 2-0 lead.
The final two runs scored in the seventh. Zach Valdez began the inning with a single to left-center. After a sacrifice bunt moved him to second, he scored on a single to center by Levi Cummings. Jacob Maiben followed with a double to left-center to put runners at second and third. After Herzog walked, Derek Maiben was hit-by-pitch for the RBI and a 4-0 lead.
Boivin entered in the home half of the seventh working around a one-out single getting a strikeout and fly out. Dunaway came on in the eighth working a 1-2-3 inning with a lineout and a pair of strikeouts. Then in the ninth, a leadoff single was left on base after Dunaway added a pair of strikeouts and a fly out for the 4-0 victory.
WOU held the 10-5 edge in hits and Saint Martin's 18-29, 13-17 GNAC) committed the only error in the game. Jacob Maiben, Herzog and Derek Maiben all added two hits, while Derek Maiben drove in two runs. Cummings and Ho each added RBI on the day.
Five players had a hit for the Saints. On the mound, Finnley Butler started and went the first 6.1 innings to end up with the loss (1-2) allowing four earned runs. Colin Driscoll worked a scoreless final 2.2 innings.
Game two featured just six combined hits and no errors, with WOU picking up just two hits in the victory.
Scoreless into the third, WOU got on the board first. Jackson Holstad singled and moved to second when Cummings was hit-by-pitch. Jacob Maiben walked to load the bases. After a pop out, Derek Maiben hit a sacrifice fly to center to score Holstad for the 1-0 lead.
Saint Martin's answered in the home half getting a two-out RBI hit from Ryne Oshiro to tie the game at one.
Alvarez kept the Saints off the board after that working a pair of 1-2-3 innings in the fifth and sixth innings. He worked around a one-out single in the seventh and later the runner moved into scoring position with a steal. Alvarez picked up a strikeout to strand the potential game-winning run and send the game into extra innings.
Derek Maiben opened the eighth with a walk and then moved to second on a sacrifice bunt. A key wild pitch moved him to third and then he scored on a single to left by Leighton Moniz for the 2-1 lead.
Bond entered in the home half of the eighth and closed it out in style tossing the 1-2-3 inning with two strikeouts and a groundout.
Moniz and Holstad had the two hits for the Wolves, with Derek Maiben and Moniz added RBI. Jacob Maiben and Derek Maiben each drew two walks.
Four players had a hit for the Saints, with Oshiro driving in the only run. On the mound, Zach Alcos started and went the first two innings allowing a run. Kameron Richards went three scoreless innings before Aaron Nease added a scoreless sixth. Brock Wrolstad entered in the seventh and went the final two innings, allowing the go-ahead run to take the loss (2-3).
The two teams will now wait until Saturday to resume their series with expected rain in the forecast for Thursday and Friday. WOU and SMU will play another doubleheader on Saturday starting at 1 p.m. in Lacey.
