SANTA CLARITA, Calif. - After a split yesterday afternoon, the Warriors were back on the diamond in Santa Clarita for the final two games against The Master's University. Needing to rally late in both games, Jessup walked away with another split, evening the series at 2-2.
Getting the starting nod in game one for Jessup was
Brad Jones. After running his pitch count up over 3.2 innings of work, Jessup made their typical Saturday pitching change, as Jones handed the ball over to freshman
Benny May.
May looked phenomenal in this third outing of the year, as he struck out six batters over 4.1 innings of work, including striking out the side in the sixth. The only rough patch came in the seventh, with Jessup leading 4-2, as an error allowed three unearned runs to cross home for the Mustangs.
After the game, Head Coach
Trevor Paine had great things to say about his freshman right-hander. "Benny was very good again today. He had one inning that got away from us a little bit defensively but other than that he kept us in the ball game and gave us a chance to win."
Looking for a ninth-inning rally, a two-run home run by
Mike Shoenberger pushed Jessup back on top by one. Two batters later,
Jordan Yu would hit a two-run homer of his own, putting Jessup ahead by the eventual final, 8-5.
Paine added that the ninth-inning comeback was not unexpected for this Jessup team, stating, "We stuck to our motto of grinding out at-bats and getting the next guy up. We made a couple of base running mistakes but Shoenberger and Yu really picked the whole team up with a couple of big swings. It was great to see those guys deliver in those clutch situations."
Game two, similar to yesterday's doubleheader, tipped in favor of the Mustangs. TMU's bats were electric, as the Mustangs recorded ten hits in the seven-inning contest.
The Warriors went to the bullpen twice in game two, as Brett Wettelend ended his day after the second.
Ricardo Torres Jr. tossed three innings in relief, while
Nolan Murphy pitched the in the sixth. The Mustangs roughed up all three as they put up runs in each inning of game two.
Jessup's best inning in game two came in the second, down 1-0, when
Dante Peretti tied the game with an RBI double to left. Two batters later, the Warriors were in the lead as
Joseph Luevano drove in Peretti with an RBI single.
Shoenberger closed out the day 4-for-9 at the dish, driving in and scoring a pair of runs. Luevano, who entered game one as a pinch hitter, went 3-for-4 on the day.
"All in all I think we did a lot of good things this weekend," added Paine. "There were some things we could do better that we will address in practice but The Master's is a good team and it's a tough place to play.
"(The Master's) will put pressure on you and make you play clean baseball and execute. It was great preparation as we get into conference games next week."
The series split moves Jessup to 8-2 on the season, while The Master's move to 9-5. The four-game set was not a conference matchup, as the two teams sit in different divisions for the 2021 GSAC season.
GSAC play will officially begin for Jessup next weekend, as the Warriors will be in Costa Mesa for a duo of doubleheaders at Vanguard. Game one from Dean Harvey Field is set for Friday at 11 a.m.
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William Jessup University is a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), and the Golden State Athletic Conference (GSAC). For additional information regarding Jessup Athletics, visit www.jessupathletics.com; visit www.jessup.edu for more information on William Jessup University. Follow Jessup Athletics on social media: William Jessup University Athletics (Facebook) and @JessupAthletics (Twitter and Instagram).
