(SAN DIEGO) After sweeping Academy of Art in a doubleheader on Friday, 10-0 and 2-0, No. 20 PLNU Baseball just needs one win on Saturday to clinch a second-straight PacWest championship.
The Sea Lions' pitching staff dominated once again, extending its scoreless innings streak to 40.2, while recording its fifth-consecutive shutout.
Dylan Miller threw seven shutout innings in game one while striking out 10 batters.
Josh Combs pitched the final inning of the first game, before
Kaden Lewis,
Hunter Otjen and
Cole Hillier combined to blank the Urban Knights in game two.
David Garcia's two-out, two-RBI single up the middle opened the scoring on the day for the Sea Lions in the bottom of the third inning.
That started a streak of four-straight innings that Point Loma scored runs in, with
Owen May tacking on another in the fourth with a sacrifice fly before
Hunter Otjen plated two in the fifth with a single down the right field line.
PLNU added three runs in the sixth, two coming from one of
Jake Entrekin's three doubles in the game and the other off an ART U error.
The Sea Lions then scored twice in the eighth, on a
Tommy Burleson single and a
Seth Ryberg double, which put Point Loma up 10-0 and ended the game via run rule after eight innings.
Both teams were then locked in a pitchers' duel in game two, with no runs being scored until
Jack Malone's two-RBI double in the bottom of the sixth.
Hillier then stranded the tying run at first, as PLNU won its sixth-straight game for its longest winning streak of the season.
Point Loma (32-12 overall, 20-8 PacWest) hosts Academy of Art on Saturday in a doubleheader beginning at noon.
The Sea Lions will honor seniors
David Garcia,
Matthew Schlesener and
Troy Wentworth before the first game as part of Senior Day.
