LA MIRADA, Calif. — Concordia Irvine used four home runs to defeat Biola 8-0 in five innings, clinching its fourth consecutive PacWest Championship at Freedom Field and ending Biola's quest for its first-ever tournament title.
"I think we knew this was going to be tough. One of the advantages of being in the winner's bracket is that you get to save your pitching, you don't have to play as many games and you don't have to have as long of days," said Halte. "In this last game it just really caught up to us. We out-hit them in this last game, but we also gave up the long balls. This, again, is a great learning opportunity for us."
The Golden Eagles scored all eight runs in the first two innings against a trio of Biola pitchers. Concordia's offense got rolling immediately in the top of the first when Audrey Robles homered to left field on the first pitch she saw, a two-run shot. After a Biola fielding error put another runner on, Caitlynn Campbell followed with a two-run homer of her own to make it 4-0.
Kayla Bousquette entered in relief and retired the final two batters of the first to escape further damage. In the second, however, back-to-back singles by Robles and Morgan Kneubuhler set the table for Veronica Moore, who homered to center field for three more runs.
Madeline Granados came on in the circle after Moore's blast, but Campbell got herself another big blast, hitting a solo shot down the left-field line to cap an 8-0 lead through two frames.
Granados settled in from there, retiring nine of the last 11 batters she faced over the final three innings to keep the score where it was.
Biola collected eight hits but could not push a run across. Jackie Ibarra went 2-for-3 and Mikala Huskey went 2-for-2 to lead the offense. The Eagles' best scoring chance came in the third when Alexa Medley Sheard and Kendall Nakano delivered back-to-back singles to put runners on the corners, but Ibarra was thrown out at the plate on the relay, and Biola came away empty.
Concordia's Kacie Gossett tossed a five-inning complete-game shutout, scattering eight hits and a walk without recording a strikeout. She earned PacWest tournament Most Outstanding Pitcher honors for her efforts. CUI's Robles earned Most Outstanding Player. Concordia went 3-1 at the tournament with Biola finishing 3-2.
The game marked the final contest at Freedom Field for Biola's seniors, including DJ Symons, Ariana Banos, Kayla Bousquette, Cami Lara, and team manager Paige Gonzalez.
"I am so blessed to have played all four years at Biola. To play for the championship on our home field -- I am so thankful for that," said Kayla Bousquette. "This year has been a battle. We've had learning experiences along the way. I'm blessed to see how God has worked through each moment on the field."
"This senior year has been amazing for all of our senior class. We have a special group of seniors," said DJ Symons. "It's been so fun to finish it out with them. We were saying on senior day how we were so thankful to get more games on our field. There's nothing but good memories on this field."
"Being at Biola is not only about growing as an athlete, but it's about growing as a woman of God and a person," said Symons. "I feel truly that all of us seniors have truly grown in our time here at Biola, not only as athletes but as people."
With the loss, Biola moved to 38–21 on the season. The Eagles will learn their NCAA Division II Regional destination, seed, and opponent during the NCAA selection show on May 11 at 7 a.m. PT on NCAA.com. The Eagles have checked in at No. 6 in the two most recent NCAA Division II West Regional Rankings.
"We're hopeful for next week," said Halte. "We're hoping to learn from this and use it to our advantage."
