MONMOUTH, Ore. --- The Western Oregon baseball team sent their seniors out with a bang in their final home series as the Wolves completed the four-game sweep of Saint Martin's with a 8-1 and 5-4 wins Sunday on Senior Day at WOU Baseball Field.
With the wins, WOU has secured its spot into the GNAC Championships set for May 9-11 in Billings, Montana.
It was a senior spinning a near gem for the Wolves (24-18 overall, 18-10 GNAC) in game one as
Arturo Alvarez didn't give up an earned run in eight innings of work - allowing just five hits while while striking out four and not giving up a free pass.
Ryan Shipley, another senior, pitched a final scoreless inning to close out the game.
Alvarez got all the support he needed in the first inning as the Wolves put up a three-spot on an
AJ Cortese RBI single (also a senior), a
John Oleson RBI single and a
Randy Stultz RBI double. The lead grew to 8-0 after a five-run sixth for the Wolves - highlighted by a two-run double by senior
Zach Valdez.
For Alvarez, it was his seventh win of the season as he now has 19 in his WOU career - seventh on the GNAC all-time list and eighth on the WOU all-time list.
Cortese finished 3-for-5 with two RBI and a run,
Curran Mitzel (a senior) went 3-for-5 with a run, RBI and stolen base, Oleson went 2-for-3 with an RBI and a Run and Valdez finished 2-for-4 with a double, two RBI and a run.
In game two, the Wolves had to rally to beat SMU (15-31, 9-19). WOU took a 1-0 lead in the third when Mitzel lined a homer to right. But the Saints took their first lead since leading the first game Saturday 1-0 after the top of the first (which the Wolves scored five runs in the bottom half of the inning) when they plated three across in the fifth to make it 3-1.
But like in the first game, the lead didn't last long.
In the bottom half of the inning
Danny Alvarado hit an RBI double to cut the lead to one, the Wolves scored on a throwing error to tie and took the lead for good on a two-run double to left center by
Owen Bischoff to make it 5-3.
The Saints picked up a run in the sixth to cut the lead in half, but
Bryce Bond shut the door on SMU with a 1-2-3 seventh inning for his fourth save of the season (and ninth in his career - fifth on the WOU all-time list).
Jacob Memmott got the start and gave up two runs on four hits with two strikeouts and no walks in 4.1 innings of work while
Devin Bell got the win, allowing two runs on three hits in 1.2 innings of action.
Mitzel went 2-for-3 with the home run, RBI and two runs to lead WOU.
The Wolves now sit a game back of No. 23 Northwest Nazarene (17-7 in GNAC play) - but three in the loss column having played four more GNAC games. WOU doesn't play next weekend before ending the season at Montana State Billings on May 2-3.
