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SAN DIEGO – Ricky Gingras carried Point Loma Nazarene to a 5-4 non-conference win over Arizona Christian Friday afternoon at Carroll B. Land Stadium. The junior catcher blasted a grand slam in the fourth and then drove in what proved to be the game-winner in the seventh.

Picking up the win for PLNU was starter Justin Lawrence (2-1) who went six innings, yielding two runs on six hits and five walks. The Sea Lion right hander fanned six Firestorm batters.

Sea Lion coach Joe Schaefer utilized four pitchers and all of them were challenged by the second-year program from Phoenix.

Lawrence set down the ACU lineup 1-2-3 in the first before struggling through the next few frames. He allowed two consecutive hits to start the second, before setting down the next three batters and come away unscathed.

Wildness hurt Lawrence in the third though, when he walked four consecutive Firestorm hitters to force in the game's first run.

Alika Pruett, ACU's starter, ran into similar trouble in the next half inning. He walked three straight Sea Lions to load the bases until a liner off the bat of Clinton Harwick was turned into a double play. Still, although the sacks were full, the home team was searching for its first hit when Gingras stepped in.

The lefty-swinging backstop delivered in a big way for PLNU, blasting a Pruett offering over the rightfield fence. Gingras' grand slam, the first Loma homer hit this season by someone other than Brian Burkhead, gave the Sea Lions a 4-1 lead.

The Firestorm got a run closer in the top of the fourth when Garison Hensley doubled and later crossed the plate on a RBI hit from Jake Storrer.

Not much happened for the next few frames until things got dicey for the Green and Gold in the seventh. Josh Dexheimer took over for Lawrence to start the frame and was greeted with two singles. A sac bunt moved the runners into scoring position with one out. Dexheimer walked the next batter to load the bases.

The Sea Lion lefty temporarily dodged damage by fanning pinch-hitter Zac Livingston but an infield error allowed Arizona Christian to get a run closer.

Point Loma got that run back in the bottom of the inning when Gingras collected a one-out, RBI hit on Pruett's 127th – and last – pitch of the day.

Garrett Gooding took the ball for the Sea Lions in the eighth. The southpaw hit one batter and walked another before giving up a RBI single to former Loma outfielder Kendall Konopka. Konopka's hit was nearly grabbed by a leaping Marcus Heisner at second base, but the ball went just off his glove.

Chris Gonzales picked up his second save of the year after he preserved PLNU's win by tossing a scoreless ninth.  

Point Loma improved to 7-4 with the win and dropped Arizona Christian to 4-9 on the season.

The same two squads will be back at Carroll B. Land Stadium on Saturday for a doubleheader that begins at 11:00 am.