(SAN DIEGO) No. 5 PLNU Baseball won the Battle of the Otjen Brothers on Thursday, sweeping a doubleheader with Hawai'i Pacific by scores of 4-3 and 6-3.
 
In game one, Point Loma right fielder Hunter Otjen faced off against his younger brother Jordan, a freshman pitcher who started on the mound for the Sharks.
 
The two duked it out twice, with Hunter Otjen grounding out to short in a nine-pitch at-bat his first time up before tripling to the warning track in right field his second time around.


 
Jordan Otjen pitched four innings and left with the game even at 2-2, after Scott Anderson's two-run homer in the bottom of the fourth tied it up.
 

Scott Anderson's two-run homer ties it up for @PLNUBaseball against HPU. pic.twitter.com/mW8RRw7gCN

— PLNU Sea Lions (@PLNUSeaLions) March 21, 2024

 
Anderson then sparked PLNU once again in his next at-bat, fouling off seven-straight pitches before singling to right field to lead off the bottom of the sixth.
 
He then advanced to third on a hit-and-run base hit from Bryson Hashimoto, before run-scoring singles from Jake Entrekin and Tommy Molina gave the Sea Lions a 4-2 advantage.
 

Jake Entrekin puts @PLNUBaseball in front with an RBI-single to right. pic.twitter.com/BEIzhHsCaU

— PLNU Sea Lions (@PLNUSeaLions) March 21, 2024

 
HPU got one back in the top of the ninth, but it wasn't enough for the visitors as Dylan Miller pitched seven innings of two-run ball to pick up his PacWest-leading sixth win of the year.
 
Then after the Sharks took an early 1-0 lead in game two, Joey Nicolai's two-out RBI-single in the bottom of the second tied the game for Point Loma.
 

Joey Nicolai's RBI-single draws @PLNUBaseball level with HPU in Game 2. pic.twitter.com/ay1gzSfahk

— PLNU Sea Lions (@PLNUSeaLions) March 21, 2024

 
A sacrifice fly put HPU back in front in the top of the third, before Eric Smelko's groundout tied it up once more in the bottom of the fourth following Nicolai's sacrifice bunt that moved runners into scoring position.
 
Hunter Otjen then knocked home the winning runs with a three-run, opposite-field blast to right in the fifth to put the Sea Lions ahead, 5-2.
 

Hunter Otjen's 3-run blast gives @PLNUBaseball the lead. pic.twitter.com/JsF2FeUqp9

— PLNU Sea Lions (@PLNUSeaLions) March 21, 2024

 
HPU answered with a solo shot in the top of the sixth, only for Esai Santos to respond with one of his own in the bottom half.
 

Esai Santos' solo shot extends the lead for @PLNUBaseball. pic.twitter.com/P9wSHEfyKV

— PLNU Sea Lions (@PLNUSeaLions) March 21, 2024

 
Ray Cebulski (6 IP, 3 R) earned the win, while James Sashin pitched a scoreless seventh inning to record his second save of the day and his PacWest-leading 10th of the season.
 
Point Loma (20-7-1 overall, 12-5-1 PacWest) and Hawai'i Pacific will conclude their series on Friday with a doubleheader inside Carroll B. Land Stadium scheduled to begin at noon.