LINCOLN, Calif – On a record-breaking day at McBean Park, the Warriors left the ballpark unhappy as The Master's University swept the day to win the four-game series. Even after Jessup set a new single-game record for hits, TMU would total 32 runs on the day that was too much for Jessup to combat.
 
Game one did not start the way Jessup had hoped, as the Mustangs took a 3-0 lead off a first-inning homer. Back-to-back triples in the bottom half from Kevin Jordan Jr. and Mike Shoenberger plated a run, but that would be all for Jessup in the frame.
 
TMU made their first big splash in the third, plating nine runs thanks to three home runs. But the nine-run inning did not discourage Jessup, as they bounced back to score eight in the bottom half. Kevin Gutierrez and Kawaiola Takemura would each homer in the inning as the Warriors cut the deficit to 12-9.
 
"I told the team last week that when McBean's playing like this, I always cut the deficit in half," said Head Coach Trevor Paine on the rally. "That's how I coach the game. We responded well. We strung together some good at-bats and got some big hits."
 
It was all Mustangs from that point on, as they added runs in four consecutive innings, the big shot coming as seven runs scored in the eighth with four runs scoring on a grand slam.
 
Jessup tried to piece together a comeback, adding two in the sixth off back-to-back doubles from Jaisten Cabatbat and Joseph Luevano and again two runs in the ninth. Needing 13 runs in the ninth to send the game to extra innings, the Warriors couldn't come up with a comeback for the ages as TMU took the opener 25-14.
 
The 39 combined runs are the most runs ever scored in a single-game at McBean Park (Prev. 33).
 
Even though the Warriors finished on the wrong end of an 11-run loss, Jessup did outhit The Master's in game one. Jessup's 24 hits to the Mustangs' 18 were outdone as TMU hit seven home runs in the game, none of which were solo shots. The 24 hits are a new single-game record for Jessup Baseball.
 
On the home runs by the Mustangs in game one, Paine noted, "When the wind's blowing out like it was here, we talk about not giving up free bases, and we gave up too many today. Instead of giving up solo home runs, they were two-run, three-run shots. Just didn't do a good enough job of limiting free bases."
 
Again in game two, it was The Master's who got on the board first, scoring in the second to take a 1-0 lead. TMU would make it 3-0 with a two-run fourth, with one of the runs coming on their eighth homer of the day, which was finally a solo shot.
 
Entering the bottom of the fourth still without a baserunner, Jessup ended TMU's no-hit and shutout bid as, after a Shoenberger walk, Dante Peretti launched a long home run to left to cut the score to 3-2.
 
With the score remaining at 3-2 entering the seventh, the Mustangs began to add insurance runs as four runs scored after nine batters came to the plate. Once again, needing a sizeable final inning rally, the Warriors got a late run as Kreighton Tsuruda-Gaspar hit a solo home run to left, but that was all as the Warriors fell 7-3.
 
The four-game set with the Mustangs was not a conference matchup, as Jessup and TMU sit in different divisions for the 2021 season. Jessup falls to 16-14 with the two losses.
 
"We were somewhat fortunate going into this short week that we had a non-conference opponent," Paine added. "We were able to rest some guys and get some guys healthy."
 
Jessup will return to conference action next week, as the Warriors will hit the road for a midweek series at Westmont College. After dropping three-of-four to Westmont just two weeks ago at McBean, Jessup will look to get in the win column when game one starts Tuesday at 11 a.m.
   
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).