Box Score 1 | Box Score 2

FRESNO, Calif. -  Quality pitching and timely hitting helped Point Loma earned a doubleheader split with Fresno Pacific on Friday. PLNU took game one 3-1 in 10 innings before dropping game two 7-4.
 
PLNU is now 19-16 on the season and in fourth in the Pacific West Conference standings with a 10-8 record. Fresno Pacific remained two games back of PLNU in the standings at 8-10 (20-16 overall).
 
Game 1
Point Loma's freshman starter Kellen Sheppard gave up six hits and just one run in 7.2 innings to keep the Sea Lions in the game and allow Ryan Garcia to come through with the game-winning triple in the 10th inning as PLNU won 3-1.
 
Sheppard allowed just three hits in the first six innings and did not run into any trouble until the seventh inning when the Sunbirds scored one run and threatened for more with one out and the bases loaded but Sheppard got John Koretoff to ground into the double play to end the inning.
 
Point Loma kept pressure on FPU throughout the game but come only push runs across the board in the third and 10th innings. Tyler Nordgren gave PLNU the early 1-0 lead with a single to center to score Clinton Harwick and the score would remain that way until FPU tied the game in the seventh on a RBI-single by Kaohu Gaspar.
 
Senior Tyler Hanzawa got the whole rally started for PLNU in the 10th when he singled to lead off the inning and then advanced to second on a passed ball. The Sea Lions' leading RBI man Tyler Nordgren then stepped to the plate. He got ahead in the count 2-0 and then did the unexpected; lay down a bunt. Nordgren didn't get a hit out of the ordeal but the bunt allowed Hanzawa to scmpaer to third base as the go-ahead run with one out.
 
Garcia then came to the plate and with a  2-2 count he tripled to right field to drive in Hanzawa as eventual game-winning run. Mike Marcouw would add an insurance run for PLNU with a bunt single to first base to let Garcia sprint in from third and put Point Loma up 3-1.
 
Brett Carlile, who had come in for Sheppard with the bases loaded in the eighth, pitched a scoreless bottom of the 10th to preserve his own win (3-5). He pitched 2.1 innings allowing just one hit while walking one.
 
Hanzawa and Garcia each had two hits for PLNU, while Gaspar paced FPU with two.
 
Game 2
Fresno Pacific got 5.2 scoreless innings out of its bullpen to stymie a Sea Lions offense in a game that looked like it was going to be a high scoring affair early. PLNU erased an early three-run deficit with two run innings in the third and fourth.
 
However that lead was short lived as the Sunbirds scored three in the fourth to take back the lead and never again trailed in the game.
 
Kaohu Gaspar was 3-for-4 with two doubles and four RBI for Fresno Pacific.
 
Matt Jervis had three hits and an RBI. He also was hit by a pitch as he reached base in four of his five plate appearances. Tyler Nordgren also had two doubles and a run scored, while Clinton Harwick had two hits and a run scored out of his customary leadoff spot. 

Michael Rodrigues earned the win for the Sunbirds with 5.1 scoreless innings outs of the bullpen. He allowed just four hits to pick up his first win of the season. Kevin Lillicrop took the loss for PLNU but the Sea Lions also received a strong performance out of itws bullpen with Cole Chandler allowing just two hits and one run in 4.1 innings of work while striking out four.
 
Next games
The teams will close out their four-game series with another doubleheader starting at Noon on Saturday (Apr. 12).