SAN DIEGO - John Balliet proved today why he is considered one of the best two-way players, not only in the West Region but in NCAA Division II. The senior outfielder/pitcher came through with a two-RBI double and then closed out the game in a 2-1 victory over UC Colorado Springs.
 
Balliet got the Sea Lions on the board in the second inning when he crushed a ball off the wall in right-center field to score Justin Ledgerwood from second and Colby Kaneshiro from first.
 
Point Loma's starter Zack Noll would make that 2-0 lead hold on up. The junior left-hander went seven innings allowing just two hits and no runs, while walking three and striking out five. He has not allowed a run in his first 17.1 innings as a Sea Lion.
 
He was lifted before the eighth after throwing 90 pitches. Nicholas Cornelius worked the eighth and turned the ball over to Balliet for the save. After walking the first batter and having the next runner sacrifice him to second, Balliet struck out the next two batters for his third save of the season.  
 
UCCS starter Jonathan Cowles was very impressive on the mound as well. He pitched a complete game allowing just two hits and two walks to go along with those two earned runs. He also struck out eight.

Team Records
Point Loma (6-2, 0-0 PacWest), UC Colorado Springs (5-3, 0-0 RMAC)
 
Words from the student-athletes

 
Words from coach James
On another close victory: "These games are huge early in the season. It is important to have games like this so our guys can learn to still perform at a high level under perceived pressure. We try to slow the game down, and you can't truly know those situations until you are really thrown into the fire. Our guys have responded well, especially the pitching staff. We practice these pressure situations all the time, and I think that has helped us early."
 
On UC Colorado Springs: "I think they are a great team. They are very well coached, and they have a lot of good players. (Cowles) is going to win them a lot of games. Our guys understand that we are not going to knock a guy like that around, but that we are going to have to battle, elevate his pitch count and try to scrape a run across. It was just one hit that separated us today, so the little things really do matter."
 
On Noll's performance: "Zack Noll did a great job against a good offense. He has a really good mentality on the mound. He always on the attack. He keeps leverage counts and gets ahead of the batter, which allows him to get away with a little more at times. He also has a mature mentality out there. All those things are what makes him a really good pitcher."
 
On Balliet's performance: "John has worked really hard to improve his game. He was coming off a really good season last year, and he has a lot of potential to get even better. He has been very good on the mound for us in big situations. He likes that and thrives in that role. His at-bats have also gotten better which has been great to see as we move deeper into the season."

News and Notes
> Balliet is now tied for sixth in school history with 11 career saves
> PLNU has won the series opener in its last seven series
> This is the first-ever meeting between PLNU and UCCS
> Noll has been the starter in all three games Point Loma has allowed one or fewer runs
> Micah Pries' streak of reached base safely ended at 30 consecutive games
 
Up Next
The Sea Lions and Mountain Lions will conclude their three-game series with a doubleheader on Saturday, Feb. 16. First pitch is scheduled for 11 a.m.