LA MIRADA, Calif. --- Senior Hawkins Gebbers spent the first part of the day at the hospital, then most of the game asleep in his dorm room. But after being awakened in the ninth inning of a tie game and entered into the game in the 10th, he ended the dramatic game with an equally dramatic walk-off in the bottom of the 10th to lead Biola to 6-5 GSAC win over California Baptist.

For Gebbers, a pre-season NAIA All-American, it was his third home run of the season but first walk-off in his collegiate career. It lifted the Eagles to 6-9 on the season and back to .500 in GSAC play at 3-3. The loss drops the Lancers to 13-4 overall and to 5-3 in the conference.

Gebbers, who has been plagued with a strong cough over the last few weeks, was in the hospital this morning receiving tests after concerns he had a tear in his esophagus. However, the tests came back negative and he was told to rest up for a while. He arrived at the game just after it began and stayed for the first few innings, but headed back to his room to rest after the third inning with Biola leading 5-0. Cal Baptist came back late in the contest, tying the game with a run in the top of the ninth and Coach John Verhoeven sent one of his players to wake up Gebbers for a possible pinch-hit appearance.

Gebbers quickly woke up and got dressed and headed back to the field. Running mostly on adrenaline, he entered the game in the top of the 10th as a defensive replacement at second. The Eagles held the Lancers without a run in the inning and with one out in the bottom of the frame, Gebbers stepped to the plate and took the second pitch he saw and launched it over the fence in left field for the game-winner.  The whole situation was similar to what happened in game one of the 1988 World Series where the Los Angeles Dodgers' Kirk Gibson--who was barely able to walk earlier in the day--came off the bench to hit a game-winning home run in the bottom of the ninth.

The home run helped the Eagles hold on for the win after the Lancers scored five runs in the final inning to tie the ballgame. It also comes at a big time as the Eagles have now won four of their last five games after starting the season at 2-8.

The Eagles got on the board early in the contest, scoring two in the bottom of the first inning on a two-run double by Taylor Loop off the wall in left. They would add three more in the third inning on a three-run home run to dead centerfield by Brent Opdyke after Nick Rotkowitz and David West had opened the inning with singles.

Cal Baptist starter Cory Kiefer lasted just 1-1/3 innings, leaving after walking the first two hitters of the inning and giving up a deep out to left. Kiefer allowed two runs on two hits but walked three batters and allowed five of the first nine batters he faced to reach base.

Meanwhile, Biola starter Nate Coronado was cruising, and didn't get into his first jam of the game until the sixth inning. With one out, a pair of singles put runners at second and third for the Lancers. Coronado worked out of the jam by getting Sean Kelley to hit an infield pop up and then retiring Jake Johnson on a routine fly out to center to end the threat.

However, Coronado ran out of gas in the top of the seventh. With two out and a runner at first, Sharif Othman drilled a shot off the centerfield fence to bring around Brian Sharp with CBU's first run of the game. The Lancers then greeted new pitcher Charlie Gausephol with a double by Matt Johnson and a single Cole Bullard which pulled them within two. Gausepohl worked out of the jam by getting Zach Hedges to ground out to end the inning.

Cal Baptist pulled even closer in the top of the eighth as Drake Fages hit a solo homer which made it 5-4.

After holding the Eagles without a run in the bottom of the eighth, the Lancers would tie the score in the ninth thanks to a one-out single to right field by Bullard. They kept the pressure on by putting runners at second and third with two out before Billy Vopinek struck out Brett McIntosh to end the inning.

Biola was again unable to score in the bottom of the ninth and it appeared as though the Lancers would take the lead in the 10th. Cal Baptist was able to load the bases on a pair of hits and a walk, all with one out. But Vopinek struck out Othman for the second out and Loop picked Fages off third on a failed safety squeeze bunt to end the threat.

That would set up the dramatic walk-off shot by Gebbers and hand Biola the win.

Biola got another outstanding start from Coronado, who scattered six hits and allowed two earned runs over 6-2/3 innings pitched. However, for his second-straight start, the freshman's strong pitching did not lead to a win. The victory instead went to Vopinek, who picked up his first win of the season after recording his first blown save opportunity an inning earlier.

The Eagles pounded out 12 hits in the game with Loop, Rotkowitz and Chavez each collecting two. In fact, all but one starter for Biola had at least one hit in the game. Bobby Kelley suffered the loss for the Lancers to drop to 1-1.

Biola returns to action on Saturday (Feb. 28), traveling to Irvine for a GSAC doubleheader against Concordia University beginning at 11:00 a.m.