GAME ONE BOX SCORE | GAME TWO BOX SCORE
LA MIRADA, Calif. — Biola junior pitcher Brian Albert held No. 2-ranked Azusa Pacific to just one run on four hits and junior Hawkins Gebbers blasted a three-run homer to lead the Eagles to an 8-1 win in the second game of a doubleheader and a split of a GSAC doubleheader on Saturday afternoon at Eagles Diamond.
The Cougars won the first game of the doubleheader in dramatic fashion, scoring five runs in the top of the ninth for the 7-4 victory.
Biola improves to 15-8 on the season and 10-7 in GSAC play while Azusa Pacific moves to 21-5 and 12-4 in conference.
Alberts pitched an absolute gem in the nightcap, striking out nine and allowing just two hits to improve to 2-3 on the season. He had a no-hitter going through 5-1/3 innings before the Cougars were able to get back-to-back singles.
Biola's offense got going early with a two-spot in the second. With one out Scott Nelson drove a double into left centerfield, then scored on a single by David West. Matt McQueen then hit a two-out single to right to put runners at first and third and Daniel Bodemer drove home West with a chopper up the middle.
Nelson collected his second hit of the game in the third inning, send a shot into leftfield to score Nick Rotkowitz, who led the inning off with a single and stole second.
Biola broke the game open with a four-run fourth inning. Bodemer collected his second hit of the game, a single off the glove of the diving first baseman. Chris Foreman was hit by a pitch right after that and Rotkowitz came through with a single up the middle to plate Pace–the courtesy runner for Bodemer. That would be it for APU starter Christian Gagne and Gebbers greeted the new pitcher, Scott Sakoda, with a three-run home run to make it 7-0.
Biola's offense produced well in the first game as well as the Eagles jumped out to an early 4-0 lead. Foreman led off the first with a single to second, then stole second and reached third on a ground out. Kris Cook then plated Foreman with a triple down the right-field line and was driven in by a double by Brent Opdyke.
Biola would add another run in the second on an RBI groundout by Foreman and added a run in the fourth on a sacrifice fly by McQueen.
Meanwhile, Eagles' starter Jimmy Johnson was rolling along, allowing just four hits through the first five innings. In the sixth, Johnson allowed a leadoff single, then was hit on the ankle by a comebacker to the mound. He elected to stay in the game and gave up a double to the next hitter to allow the Cougars their first run of the day, but worked out of the game. Johnson would get the first two outs of the seven before allowing a single and turning the game over to the bullpen.
In the eighth inning, Azusa Pacific pulled within two runs at 4-2, benefiting on a Biola error to score an unearned run with two outs.
The Cougars completed the comeback in the ninth as Galen Komo and Matt Venegas opened with a single and double, respectively, off Biola's Steven Alexander. Alexander then got Ryan Dowell to strikeout swinging but hit Stephen Kohatsu with a pitch to load the bases.
The Eagles then brought on Justin Rodriguez to pitch to APU's leading hitter Bryce Cutspec, who promptly hit a single up the middle to tie the game at 4-4. Rodriguez then struck out Kirk Nieuwenhuis looking and was replaced by Charlie Gausepohl. However, his second pitch to Stephen Gillette was tattooed over the centerfield fence for a three-run shot which gave the Cougars the lead for good.
Biola would go 1-2-3 in the bottom of the ninth to suffer its first loss of the year when leading after eight innings.
The Eagles return to action on Friday (Mar. 21), hosting a two-game series against non-conference foe Patten University at Eagles Diamond at 2:30 p.m.
###
