SAN DIEGO – The Point Loma baseball team completed the series sweep of Holy Names with a pair of victories on Monday, Apr. 9. Adam Rios went 5-for-7 with three home runs, nine RBI and four runs scored in the doubleheader. PLNU won the opener 17-4 and the series finale 9-6.  
 
Game 1: Stephen Young took a perfect game into the sixth inning and PLNU scored in every inning but the seventh to cruise to the 17-4 victory.
 
Young (5-2) retired the first 17 batters in order until a line drive by Brad Bussard snuck just over the leaping, outstretched glove of Adam Rios at shortstop. Young finished his outing by going seven innings, allowing three hits and two runs (one earned) while walking one and striking out six.
 
He was staked to an 8-0 lead after two innings, an 11-0 lead after four and a 16-0 lead after six. Five Sea Lions recorded a multi-hit game including Adam Rios, who went 3-for-4 with a home run, five RBI and two runs scored. Tyler Flores, Justin Ledgerwood, Travis Takata and Casey Dunlap all recorded two RBI.
 
Game 2: The bats did not slow down in game 2 as PLNU scored in each of the first five innings to build a 9-0 lead, and then hold on for the 9-6 win.
 
Rios again led the offense. He went 2-for-3 with two home runs, four RBI and two runs scored. Micah Pries was 3-for-4 with two doubles, an RBI and two runs scored. Ryan Casper also had three hits and added two RBI.
 
Wyatt Shackleford earned his seventh straight win. He went 5.2 innings, allowing eight hits and six runs. He walked two and struck out three. John Balliet earned his sixth save of the season by striking out the side.
 
Team Records
Point Loma (23-14, 19-9 PacWest), Holy Names (7-27, 3-21 PacWest)
 
PacWest Implications
The Sea Lions now have the most wins in conference with 19. They still remain second place in the standings, four games back of first-place Azusa Pacific (17-3 PacWest). The losses keep Holy Names in the cellar at 3-21.
 
Schaefer speaks
On scoring in 14 of 16 innings: "In the first game they gave us a lot of opportunities with walks and some hit batters. We did a good job sticking with our approach and capitalizing on some good counts. We were the benefactors of having some extra base runners which definitely helped us score in as many innings as we did."
 
On Stephen Young's performance: "He did an exceptional job. He took notes on what Trevor Abshire did Saturday. He picked up right where Trevor left off. He got ahead in the count, located his fastball and got groundball outs early in the count. He did an awesome job."
 
On Adam Rios' performance: "He did a good job, and it was an awesome performance. Those were all big hits too which extended leads for us, which we really needed in that last game. It was a great day."
 
On completing the sweep: "I think a conference sweep, regardless of the opponent, is a big deal. Whether home or road, and whoever the opponent is, it doesn't matter. If you can sweep a conference series, it is huge. In a competitive conference like the PacWest, usually everyone is just going to beat up on each other, so when you can sweep a series and pick up a few games on everyone else, it goes a real long way."
 
News and Notes
> Rios now has six home runs this season after hitting just one last year
> PLNU outscored HNU in the series 54-15
> Point Loma only trailed a half-inning in the series
> Flores is now one RBI from moving into the Sea Lions' single-season top 10
> Shackleford's only loss of the season came in relief on Feb. 10
 
Up Next
It will be a short week for the Sea Lions as they turn around and host Academy of Art on Apr. 12-14.