LINCOLN, Calif. – Fans of low-scoring baseball were not going to be keen on what took place inside the lines of McBean Park as a pair of slugfests broke out on Saturday. Backed by 36 runs across two games, the Warriors picked up two more wins over Corban as they clinched their second series sweep of the year.
Jessup pushed across 62 runs during the four-game set, averaging out for 15.5 runs/game. The Warriors also sent 21 balls over the fence, an average of 5.25 home runs/game.
Game one of Saturday's doubleheader saw the Warriors launch eight home runs, with three coming off the bat of infielder
Connor Culp. Culp becomes the second Jessup player ever to hit three homers in a game, joining
Rhys De Highden, who achieved the same feat a year ago.
Culp also doubled, giving him 14 total bases on the day, breaking De Highden's record of 13 from a year ago.
The opening contest was a precursor to the big game tomorrow, as it was a high-scoring back-and-forth battle. Jessup walked away on the winning end, 19-18, thanks to a six-run seventh inning that saw Drew Andrews and Culp each hit three-run home runs.
Three-run homers have become Andrews' thing, as he hit one in game two of Friday's doubleheader as well. Then, in the series finale, Andrews added two more three-run shots, giving him four home runs and 13 RBI on the weekend.
Andrews closed out the four games batting 7-for-13 at the dish.
The Warriors used seven pitchers in game one, as freshman
Xavier Maldonado earned his second collegiate victory.
Kevin Gutierrez was called on in the ninth to close the door and pick up his first save of the season.
Trevor Arnston improved his record to 2-0 after allowing three runs on four hits over four innings of game two's 17-4 victory.
Preston Brook and
JJ Coates pitched in relief.
Jessup trailed 4-0 to start game two, but a five-run fourth inning gave them the lead. A five-run inning was good, but the 12-run inning that followed was great. In that inning,
Chris Lopez,
Kayde Iranon, and Andrews all left the ballpark. Andrews did so twice.
Now 10-1 on the season, Jessup is off to the best start in program history through their first three series.
Next up comes the GSAC and Jessup's first road trip, as the Warriors will be in Arizona next week to take on Arizona Christian. The series starts under the lights on Fright night as first pitch is set for 7 p.m. (MST).
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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 Jessup University. Follow Jessup Athletics on social media: Jessup University Athletics (Facebook) and @JessupAthletics (Twitter & Instagram).
