Box Score
PORTLAND, Ore. --- Junior 3B Matt Mardesich hit two home runs and four Portland pitchers combined to hold George Fox to just two hits as the Pilots blanked the Bruins 8-0 in a non-conference baseball game at Joe Etzel Field on Tuesday afternoon. Mardesich hit a two-run homer in the seventh and drilled a towering three-run shot in the eighth to finish with five RBI’s.
UP (6-1) matches it's best start to season since 2000, when the Pilots also opened 6-1. George Fox falls to 6-5.
Portland senior starter Ed Wakefield was in a groove from the start, retiring the first 16 batters he faced. Eric Gantenbein registered GF’s first hit, a single that just made it past a diving Mardesich with one out in the top of the sixth inning. Wakefield responded by striking out the next two Bruin batters to end the frame.
Wakefield, a southpaw, finished with seven strikeouts, no walks and just one hit in 6.0 innings.
Relievers Chris Johnson and Keeler Brynteson (2-1) followed Wakefield by each pitching two-thirds of a scoreless inning, while Chris Dennis worked the final 1.2 innings to pick up his third save of the year. Dennis didn’t allow a batter to reach base, while striking out three.
Brynteson gets the win as he was the pitcher of record when Mardesich broke the scoreless tie by going yard in the bottom of the seventh.
George Fox starter Chad Jones stifled the Pilots for the first 4.0 innings before giving way to the bullpen. That’s when Portland took advantage, starting with Mardesich’s first home run in the bottom of the seventh. His shot came with two outs and a man on and was sent beyond the left-field fence to give the Pilots a 2-0 advantage.
The Pilots then poured it on with six runs in the bottom of the eighth. First, junior 2B Riley Henricks greeted reliever Adam Webber with a run-scoring triple to right-center field, making it 3-0 in Portland’s favor. Junior DH Tyler Thompson then walked before pinch hitter Kevin Armijo smacked an RBI single to right field to make it 4-0.
After a fly-out and a George Fox error that allowed pinch runner Austin Pearce to score, Mardesich crushed his third homer of the season that sailed well beyond the fence in left field, pushing the lead to 8-0. The blast came off of new Bruin pitcher Tyler Richwine.
Brian Ranta (1-1) picks up the loss after allowing Mardesich’s first home run.
Mardesich had three of Portland’s 10 hits, while sophomore SS Kris Kauppila had a pair of hits.
Portland next hits the road for a lengthy trip away from Joe Etzel Field. The Pilots are first scheduled to visit Jonesboro, Ark., for a three-game series against the Arkansas State Redwolves. The series begins with a 4:00 p.m. (Pacific) game on Friday. Saturday’s tilt is set for 2:00 p.m., while Sunday’s series finale is slated for 11:00 a.m.
UP isn’t scheduled to play at Joe Etzel Field again until a three-game set with Southern Utah, which begins on Friday, March 26.
