SANTA BARBARA, Calif. — Jessup baseball (22-16, 18-14 PacWest) secured a critical PacWest doubleheader sweep over Westmont College (21-11, 18-11 PacWest) on Friday afternoon at Russ Carr Field, 8-7 and 6-3.
Jessup 8, Westmont 7
The series opener was a chaotic, heavyweight bout. Jessup had control early, building a comfortable 5-0 cushion by the second inning, punctuated by a two-run single from Quinton Hall. When Justin Tsukada and Cody Antone launched solo shots in the third and fourth inning, Jessup held a strong lead, 5-0.
However, Westmont defended their home turf and mounted a comeback. A pair of two-run home runs from the Westmont lineup in the sixth and seventh innings erased the Warriors' lead, leaving the game in a 7-7 deadlock in the later frames.
In the top of the eighth, Landyn Plaut found himself staring down a 0-2 count. Plaut ambushed a fastball, driving it over the right-center field wall for what would stand as the game-winning solo home run. Reliever Noah Souza took over from there, tossing two scoreless frames with three strikeouts to secure an exhausting 8-7 victory.
Jessup 6, Westmont 3
Despite falling behind 1-0 in the first inning, Jessup stayed steady. Plaut immediately answered in the second inning with his second home run of the day, a solo blast to dead center to reset the board, 1-1.
In the third, Jessup took advantage of a Westmont error and went ahead by one, 2-1. Though, the home team struck again to knot it up at two apiece, 2-2.
The visiting Warriors used the middle innings to take control over the scoreboard. Showcasing a disciplined, situational approach at the plate, Jessup batted around to plate three runs in the fourth. Jayden Montero initiated the rally with a sharp RBI single, Colby Pudge manufactured a run with a sacrifice fly, and Tony Otis capped it off with a clutch two-out RBI single up the middle, 5-2. For insurance, Matt Gonsalvez added an RBI in the fifth to put Jessup up four, 6-2.
That was more than enough run support for starter Kai Hirayama (4-1). Hirayama was surgical on the mound, keeping the Westmont lineup off-balance and inducing weak contact throughout his outing. Aided by a flawless defensive performance behind him, Hirayama minimized damage and cruised to a 6-3 decision, securing the Friday sweep.
"Kai was great today and he didn't want to come out of the game, he wanted to finish it. You always want that in your pitchers," Head Coach Trevor Paine noted postgame. "He saved our bullpen and put us in a good spot for tomorrow."
Reflecting on the tight Game one finish, Paine added, "That was the first time we've won a close game in a while and it's good to show we can come out ahead in those close games. It took timely hitting and a really good job out of the pen by Souza after Iwata gave us a great start."
Jessup will be back in Santa Barbara tomorrow, April 21st, for a doubleheader against Westmont to wrap up the series. First pitch is scheduled for 11:00 AM.
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About Jessup University Athletics Jessup University is a member of the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) Division II and the PacWest Conference. 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 (Instagram & X).
