FRESNO, Calif. -- The NAIA No. 8-ranked Point Loma Nazarene baseball team was on the wrong end of a Golden State Athletic Conference sweep Tuesday afternoon. The Sea Lions managed just two runs and seven hits in 18 innings of play, losing to No. 15 Fresno Pacific by identical 6-1 scores at the FPU Diamond.

The twinbill was originally scheduled for Wednesday but was moved up a day due to an impending storm expected to hit Central California.

The teams got the games in, but rain was the only thing the Sea Lions were able to beat Tuesday. Point Loma's lone run in the opener was on a slim three hits, one apiece from Allen Boyer, Shain Stoner, and Rashad Taylor. While Fresno only had nine hits, they certainly made the most of them. 

After four full scoreless innings, the Sea Lions put a run on the board first in the top of the fifth when Alec Martinez's pinch-hitting stint drove in Taylor, who had got on earlier on a single to the shortstop. Garrett Levsen would continue to hold FPU to no runs in the bottom of the fifth, but couldn't bridle the Sunbirds after that. On a two-out rally in the bottom of the sixth, Fresno busted the entire game open, scoring six runs on five hits.

A walk, single, single, single, double, and an intentional walk would end the game for Sea Lion righty Levsen. Junior transfer Chris Gonzales came in to take his place with bases loaded. On a full count, Gonzalez's first batter, second baseman Andrew Douglas, doubled down the left field line and cleaned up the bases. Tyler Kuehl would make a routine play to end the inning quickly after, but the damage - in the form of six runs - had already been done. 

Three hits from both teams were scattered across the remaining two-and-a-half innings, but no one would score again. FPU's Jesse Darrah went the distance, throwing a complete game, improving his record to 5-1.

Levsen was hung with his fifth loss of the year, and now stands at 2-5, after 5.2 innings of six hits, six runs, and six walks. Gonzales was not responsible for any runs in the loss. 

Point Loma's bats were held in check in the nightcap as well. Sunbird starter Matt Mazzoni (5-1) twirled a three-hit effort in 7.2 frames of work before giving way to Aaron Kirkpatrick and Michael Rivera.

The Sea Lions did have the lead in the contest, just as they did in the first game, after Taylor drove home Edgar Molina with a second-inning single. But Fresno Pacific pushed across the tying run in the fourth and then put up a four-spot in the sixth to take a 5-1 lead. The Sunbirds capped off the day's scoring with one in the eighth.

Kelsen Boyer was an effective starter for PLNU, yielding just one run on four hits in five innings on the hill. Reliever Josh Dexheimer (1-1) was responsible for the loss after he surrendered four runs in just two-thirds of an inning.

PLNU, which is suffering through a 5-10 March, drops to 11-13 overall, 6-11 in GSAC play. FPU improved to 19-9, 14-5 conference.

The Sea Lions have been much better at home (9-5) than on the road (2-8). They hope that trend will continue when they host the same Sunbirds for two on Saturday. First pitch is at noon.