LA MIRADA, Calif. — The ball was flying out of the field on a sunny, sweltering Friday afternoon at Eagles Diamond. Biola ran up against a No. 23 Westmont team that managed to score at least one run in every inning en route to a 24-10 victory over the home team. Due to the margin, the game ended one inning early following a 1-2-3 Biola bottom of the eighth.
The two teams combined for nine home runs and 33 total hits in the ballgame as runners were going around the bases like a merry-go-round during the opening game of this four-game PacWest Conference series. Westmont set a new school record for single-game scoring in its NCAA Division II era to get a win in what was the 198th all-time meeting between Biola and Westmont.
The Warriors put up four runs in the top of the first inning. Biola was able to answer with three of their own in the first, but a five-run third inning from WC is what began to put the game at a bit more of a distance. The Warriors also managed multiple runs in the sixth, seventh and eighth innings, punctuated by a 7-run top of the 8th, which ultimately proved to be the nail in the coffin.
Westmont went through its lineup six times over the eight innings and had two players with five hits and two others with four, combining for a season-best 26 hits against the four Biola pitchers who saw some time on the bump in this one.
Luke Caruso was a bright spot for Biola, leaving the yard twice in this ballgame in a 2-for-5 effort with three RBI. The top of the lineup was productive for BU as nine of the team's 10 runs were scored by the top four batters in coach Jesse Rodgers' lineup.
James Whitman scored two of those runs after reaching base three times via a hit-by-pitch in this one. Whitman is now up to 32 hit-by-pitches over his illustrious Biola career. Kyle Rogers was the other standout for BU. He made a fantastic play in foul territory early in the game and went 3-for-4 at the dish with one of Biola's big flies, two runs scored and three RBI.
Biola looks to shake off the disappointing game one loss against the reigning PacWest Champions in game two of the Friday doubleheader. It will be the team's final countable home game until April.
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