How Westmont became the Series’ last undefeated team

The Avista NAIA World Series is all about survival and five days after the tournament began Friday, just one unbeaten team remains.

And it’s not who you might expect.

No, it’s not 2021 champ and second-seeded Georgia Gwinnett. The Grizzlies fizzled out with an 0-2 record.

No, it’s not one of last year’s championship round teams, top-seeded Southeastern or ninth-seeded Lewis-Clark State, although both those squads remain alive.

Instead, it’s third-seeded Westmont (Calif.), which owns a whopping 12 straight victories. The Warriors (46-8) have not lost a game since April 15.

That streak continued Tuesday in the final faceoff between undefeated Series teams — a 7-3 victory against fourth-seeded William Carey (49-10).

That means the Warriors have all the momentum heading into today’s 6:35 p.m. game against Southeastern.

“Momentum is great but momentum is only as good as the effort you put forth in the game tomorrow,” Westmont coach Tyler LaTorre said. “If we think Southeastern is going to roll over, we’re in for a rude awakening, so we have to stay focused on us and what got us here and that’s a complete team — a team buy-in and a bunch of guys that play for the name on the front of their shirts.”

With Tuesday’s win, Westmont officially owns its best season in program history. The Warriors’ 46 victories surpass the 45 they accumulated last season, when they went 0-2 in their Series debut.

So how did they get here?

The reality is they’ve done it in a variety of ways, which is what makes this Westmont team so dangerous.

Tuesday, they topped William Carey (49-10) by racking up 12 hits and holding the Crusaders scoreless for the final seven innings.

Monday, in a 15-9 win against Taylor, they did it by holding their composure after giving up nine straight runs and surrendering an 8-0 lead.

In their opener against Cumberlands, it was a big five-run eighth inning that got them over the hump.

Each of their 12 straight victories had its own story, but they all ended the same way — with a big “W” next to the team with “W” on its baseball caps.

“It’s our players. It’s belief. We have belief and that’s what happens when we go down early,” LaTorre said. “We went down early in Game 1. We went up big yesterday and Taylor came back. We don’t lose belief in each other and to be honest, that’s the biggest thing — belief in each other.”

In three Series games, Westmont slugger Ryan DeSaegher leads the way with six hits, seven RBI, three runs and a home run.

On the mound, no Westmont pitcher had a better showing than Tuesday’s starter Eric Oseguera, who fanned six batters and allowed just two earned runs in 5ž innings.

“We’ve put ourselves in a good spot here and this is what we’ve been trying to do all year,” DeSaegher said. “So, we’re here and we’re ready to do it.”

Wiebe may be contacted at (208) 848-2277, swiebe@lmtribune.com or on Twitter @StephanSports.