OAKLAND, Calif. - Quality pitching and timely hitting helped lead No. 20 Point Loma to a 4-2 victory over Holy Names in a PacWest Conference contest on Friday, Apr. 5.
 
Jerry Quemada opened the game on the mound for the Sea Lions and put down the first 12 batters he faced in order. Holy Names was able to stratch out the first run of the game against Quemada in the fifth after an error on a failed pickoff attempt. The Sea Lions also cut down another runner at the plate in the same inning to keep it a one-run deficit.
 
PLNU would not trail long, however, as they rallied for three runs in the top of the sixth to take their first lead of the day. John Balliet led off the inning with a single and went to second on a sacrifice by Colby Kaneshiro. After Micah Pries was intentionally walked, Brett O'Toole singled to the opposite field to plate Balliet and tie the game at 1-1.
 
A wild pitch followed to move Pries and O'Toole each up a base. After an out by Takata, Justin Ledgerwood stepped into the box with two runners in scoring position and two out. He fell behind in the count before managing to poke one through the left side and score two runs.
 
In the bottom of the sixth, HNU put two runners on with one out, and coach Justin James went to Steven Elliott. The junior left was facing the middle of the Hawks' order, but he got two infield pop-ups to end the threat and preserve the Sea Lions' 3-1 lead.
 
The Hawks would score one more in the seventh on an RBI-double by Joe Olvera to cut Point Loma's lead to one (3-2), but PLNU answered in the top of the eighth with an insurance run off a sacrifice fly by O'Toole.
 
Elliot would go 3.2 innings allowing two hits and one run. He walked two and struck out one en route to earning his third save of the season. Quemada improved to 4-0 on the season after he went 5.1 innings allowing two hits and one unearned run while walking three and striking out seven. Christopher Gann (2-1) took the loss for Holy Names.

Team Records
#20 Point Loma (21-10, 9-4 PacWest), Holy Names (11-18, 6-8 PacWest)
 
PacWest implications
The win keeps Point Loma in second place in the PacWest standings. The Sea Lions are currently 2.5 games behind first-place Azusa Pacific, but PLNU has played three fewer conference games.

News & Notes
> Ledgerwood has moved to second on the team in RBI (21). He trails only Pries (24)
> Pries' 73 total bases are 24 more than anyone else on the team (Takata, Ledgerwood)
> Point Loma pitchers have allowed just nine hits in the first 18 innings of the series
> Four Sea Lion relievers have two or more saves
> PLNU leads the PacWest with 12 saves (four more than second-place HNU)
> PLNU improved to 19-4 in games that it commits one or fewer errors
  
Up Next
No. 20 Point Loma and Holy Names will conclude their series with a doubleheader on Saturday, Apr. 6 starting at Noon.