GAME 15: Westmont stands alone
Warriors knock off William Carey 7-3 to remain unbeaten in NAIA Series play
A stellar effort from the pitching staff gave Westmont an edge. A late surge from the lineup put the Warriors over the top.
Westmont’s pitchers didn’t allow a run over the final seven innings, and the Warriors’ offense erupted for four late runs to separate from the William Carey Crusaders in a matchup of the last two unbeaten teams at the Avista NAIA World Series.
Westmont improved to 3-0 at the tournament, topping WCU 7-3 on Tuesday at Harris Field.
“It started with our pitching staff,” Westmont third baseman Ryan DeSaegher said. “We knew they were going to give us a chance, and the offense would come around.”
The third-seeded Warriors (46-8) of California will meet top-seeded Southeastern (Fla.) at 6:35 p.m. today for a berth to the championship round. The Crusaders (49-10), from Mississippi, face Lewis-Clark State at 3:05 p.m.
DeSaegher broke a 3-3 tie in the bottom of the seventh, driving a double to the right-field wall to send home Brady Renck, who had just hit a double of his own.
Warriors first baseman Daniel Patterson added an insurance run with an infield single later in the inning. DeSaegher plated another run with a sacrifice fly in the eighth, and designated hitter Finn Snyder drew a bases-loaded, two-out walk to end the scoring.
“You just gotta wear pitchers down,” Warriors coach Tyler LaTorre said. “It’s about leaving the situation better for the guy behind you. There were a lot of ‘team at-bats’ in there.”
Westmont rallied quickly after falling into a 3-0 hole in the second inning. The Warriors answered with two runs in the bottom half of the frame, then knotted the score in the fourth on shortstop Robbie Haw’s two-out, RBI single — a bouncer that hopped right over the WCU first baseman’s head.
Three Warrior pitchers combined to allow only three hits between the fourth and final innings.
Starter Eric Oseguera went 5⅔ innings, allowing two earned runs on four hits and three walks against six strikeouts.
“He’s our most experienced arm, and I’m super proud of him,” LaTorre said of Oseguera. “The guys that came in after him trusted in the plan, and our offense was relentless.”
Relievers Zach Yates (win, 4-1) and Gabe Arteaga combined for six strikeouts against three hits over the last 3⅓ innings. Two WCU batters reached base with one out in the eighth, but Arteaga shut the door with back-to-back strikeouts to earn the save.
Westmont piled up 12 hits and seven walks, but couldn’t quite break through until the late stages of the game. Haw, Patterson and centerfielder Michael Soper tallied two hits apiece to pace the Warriors, who struck out just five times.
Eight Crusader batters reached base through the first three innings, but the WCU offense managed six baserunners the rest of the way. Outfielder RJ Stinson hit 2-for-4, with a two-RBI triple in the second inning, to lead WCU.
Crusaders starter Dario Herrera worked 3⅔ innings, surrendering three runs on six hits and two walks while striking out none. He exited early after taking a line drive to the leg. Freshman reliever Lane Jarreau took the loss. He limited the damage over the next two innings, but was pulled from the game after DeSaegher’s seventh-inning double.
“We all have a lot of belief in each other, and that’s where it starts,” DeSaegher said.
WILLIAM CAREY WESTMONT
ab r h bi ab r h bi
Stinson lf 4 1 2 2 Haw ss 4 0 2 1
Lada ss 4 0 2 1 Renck 2b 4 2 1 0
Lycette 1b 5 0 0 0 DeSaegher 3b 3 0 1 2
Lee cf 3 0 0 0 Mezurashi pr 0 1 0 0
Ratliff dh/p 5 0 2 0 McFeely rf 3 1 1 0
Little pf 0 1 0 0 O’Neil lf 4 1 1 0
Hernandez 2b 4 0 1 0 Fletcher lf 0 0 0 0
Wilson 3b 4 0 0 0 Snyder dh 3 0 1 2
Hendon ph 1 0 0 0 Patterson 1b 5 1 2 1
Jones rf 3 1 0 0 Hofstadler c 3 0 1 1
Coffey c 3 0 0 0 Soper cf 4 1 2 0
Totals 36 3 7 3 Totals 33 7 12 7
William Carey 030 000 000—3 7 2
Westmont 020 100 22x—7 12 3
William Carey ip h r er bb so
Herrera 3.2 6 3 3 2 0
Jarreau (L, 6-1) 2.2 4 2 2 1 3
Ratliff 1.2 2 2 2 4 2
Westmont ip h r er bb so
Oseguera 5.2 4 3 2 3 6
Yates (W, 4-1) 1.2 2 0 0 2 2
Artega (S, 9) 1.2 1 0 0 0 4
Attendance — 890.
AT A GLANCE
William Carey 3
Westmont 7
STARS OF THE GAME
Westmont relievers ZACH YATES and GABE ARTEAGA locked down the Crusaders’ lineup, allowing three hits and striking out six over the final 3-plus innings.
Warriors third baseman RYAN DeSAEGHER drove in a run in both the seventh and eighth innings to help his team separate.
QUOTE OF NOTE
“It was amazing to watch the guys go out there and play. You don’t have to coach much. That’s what I want them to do — I want them to play with freedom and not have a fear of failure. When you do that, you build belief.”
— Westmont coach Tyler LaTorre on his team’s clutch finish
