Spring officially began as the Whitman nine took the field for the first time this the season Friday afternoon at Borleske Stadium. The Missionaries played well but yielded one big inning that led to a 9-4 exhibition-game loss at the hands of the National Baseball Institute of Vancouver, British Columbia.
Ben McPherren ripped two hits for the Missionaries, including a near-miss home run that banged off the wall in left-center field. He settled for an RBI triple. He also poked a clutch two-out single in the second to plate a run.
Freshman shortstop Matt Brewer also slapped two hits, one of which was a double, for the Missionaries.
Junior Chris Garratt pitched the first four and two-thirds innings for Whitman before giving way to sophomore reliever Andy Tillo.
Behind excellent pitching, Whitman opened its season with a double-header sweep of the University of Puget Sound Saturday afternoon in Tacoma. The Missionaries won the opener 9-1 and rallied for a 4-3 victory in the nightcap. The games were played as part of a weekend Logger/Lute Invitational tournament and do not count in the regular Northwest Conference standings.
Jimmy Hill pitched a one-hitter for the Missionaries in the first-game victory. After allowing an unearned run in the first frame, the junior right-hander shut down the Logger bats the rest of the way. Hill struck out 10 and walked just one.
"Jimmy pitched an outstanding game and we played great baseball behind him," Whitman coach Travis Feezell said. "You aren't going to lose many games with numbers like those Jimmy posted for us today."
The Missionary offense gave Hill plenty of support scoring nine runs on six hits. Freshman David Fee and Sophomore Bobby Jones each had two hits apiece.
The Missionaries got the second-game win in dramatic fashion. With the game tied at 1-1 going into the seventh and final inning, the Loggers plated two runs to take the lead 3-1 (Whitman was the home team due to the tournament format). The Missionaries rallied behind a two-out, two-run hit from freshman Kyle Carothers that tied the game at 3-3. Ben McPherren then followed with a hit of his own to plate the winning run.
Whitman freshman Ben Harris started on the mound in the second game and limited the Loggers to two hits and two runs in six and one-third innings. Matt Brewer, another freshman, finished out the game and got the win in relief.
"I am so proud of this team," Feezell said. "For such a young team to come back in this fashion really says a lot about us."
In day two of the Lute-Logger Invitational in Tacoma, Whitman dropped both ends of a non-conference double header Sunday afternoon to Pacific Lutheran University.
PLU worked overtime to get the win in game one when Casey Harvie scored on a two-out double by Jay Chennault in the eighth frame (the tournament games were slated for seven innings). Whitman freshman Ryan Toivola started for the Missionaries and pitched into the sixth inning before giving way to another freshman, David Fee. PLU outhit Whitman 13 to 11.
Freshman Kyle Carothers, Sophomore Andy Tillo and Senior Merril Bevan all slapped two hits for Whitman in game one.
"We had our chances," Travis Feezel said about game one. "We were one out away from winning it in the seventh and then lose on a tough play in extra innings."
Despite the 8-3 outcome, game two was a bit of a pitcher's dual as the two teams combined for just nine hits. PLU broke it open in the sixth inning, scoring five runs on two hits and four walks to take the lead for good.
PLU's pitching held the Missionaries in check. Whitman managed just three hits.
"We clawed, scratched and competed but our pitching let us down," Feezel said of game two. "We'd tie it up and then walk their lead off guy the next inning. I'm proud of the way we competed but I'm not satisfied with the way we played."
Whitworth rallied for six runs in the bottom of eighth inning to edge Whitman 8-5 and complete a Northwest Conference doubleheader sweep Tuesday afternoon in Spokane, Wash. The host Pirates won the opener 11-3 in seven innings.
With senior Ben McPherren stroking three singles, the Missionaries jumped in front 4-2 after seven innings of the nine-inning second game. After throwing a strong game, however, Whitman's freshman starter, Ryan Toivola, was unable to make it out of the eighth frame as the Pirates rallied to grab an 8-4 lead. The Missionaries added a run in the top of ninth inning but could draw no closer.
Adam Zaitz rapped a two-run single for Whitman, and Travis Lovejoy scored twice while poking a run-scoring single. Kyle Carothers added a pair of hits, including a double. McPherren also knocked in a run while plating one of his own.
Whitworth never trailed in the opener after scoring six times in the first two innings.
Hitting leadoff, Whitman freshman David Fee clubbed his first collegiate home run. Senior Merrill Bevan smacked a pair of run-scoring sacrifice flys.
It took 11 long innings, but Whitworth outlasted visiting Whitman 4-3 Wednesday afternoon to complete a two-day, three-game sweep of the Missionaries.
Whitman scored twice in the top of the fifth inning to forge a 3-3 tie. That was it for the scoring, however, until the Pirates scratched out the winning run in the bottom of the 11th frame.
Whitman's Jimmy Hill hurled the first six and one-third innings, scattering 10 hits and giving up just two earned runs. Freshman Ben Harris relieved Hill in the seventh, holding Whitworth hitless the rest of the way. The Pirate's winning run was unearned.
The Missionaries outhit Whitworth 12-10. Adam Zaitz and Bobby Jones had three hits each for Whitman. Ben McPherren and Ryan Toivola added two hits apiece. Toivola also had two RBI.
The University of Puget Sound got revenge for two earlier non-conference losses to Whitman by grabbing a 14-9 victory Saturday afternoon in the opener of a three-game Northwest Conference series in Tacoma, Wash. The Loggers jumped in front early, scoring 13 runs in the first three innings.
Whitman slowly chipped away at the Logger lead but fell short in the end. Kyle Carothers led Whitman's offense with three hits including a solo home run. Shortstop Merrill Bevan had two doubles and freshman Ryan Toivola added two hits and scored two runs. Catcher Jack Brink also belted a home run for the Missionaries.
The second game of Saturday's scheduled doubleheader was postponed due to bad weather. The two teams will play a twinbill on Sunday, weather permitting.
Rain, wind, cold temperatures and the eventual loss of daylight couldn't keep Whitman and the University of Puget Sound from completing a Northwest Conference doubleheader Sunday in Tacoma, Wash. After Whitman won the opener 9-8 in 10 innings, UPS rallied for two runs in the bottom of the ninth inning to claim the nightcap 8-7.
The first game, scheduled for nine innings ended in the tenth. Junior Travis Lovejoy led off the tenth by reaching first base on an error. After Adam Zaitz moved him along with a sacrifice bunt, Lovejoy took third on a passed ball. Ryan Toivola then drove him in with an RBI single. Toivola went three-for-five on the day with a home run. He also scored three runs, drove in two and stole a base.
Other offensive stars for the game included Kyle Carothers, who had two hits including a home run; Marty Parsons with two hits and three RBI; and Matt Brewer who went three-for-five and scored two runs.
The second game, also scheduled for nine innings, went down to the wire one more time. UPS jumped out to an early five-run lead and then watched as Whitman scored three in the seventh to begin their comeback. After Andy Tillo blasted a two-run home run, the score stood knotted at six apiece going into the ninth.
Whitman scored an unearned run in the top half to take the lead but then watched as the Loggers rallied for two of their own in the bottom half to grab the win.
Westmont pitching held Whitman bats in check as the Missionaries fell 3-0 and 11-1 in a non-conference twinbill Wednesday at Borleske Stadium. The games were Whitman's first home dates of the season, not counting an early exhibition contest against the National Baseball Institute of Canada.
Sophomore Andy Tillo went all the way on the mound for the Missionaries in the first game, holding Westmont to just three runs on eight hits. It was all Westmont in the second game, however, as the visitors put 11 runs on the board. Bobby Jones knocked in the only Whitman run of the day with an RBI single in the third inning, scoring catcher Adam Zaitz.
Whitman and Willamette combined for 23 runs and 32 hits in a slugfest that finally ended with the Bearcats taking a 13-10 Northwest Conference victory Friday afternoon in Salem, Oregon.
Willamette rolled fours in both the fifth and sixth innings to open up a 10-5 lead. The visiting Missionaries answered back with five runs in the seventh frame to even the score. But the Bearcats added three more runs to claim the win.
Merrill Bevan had two hits and drove in four runs for Whitman. Bobby Jones and Kyle Carothers each had three hits, and both players smacked a double.
Willamette, the defending Northwest Conference champion, handed Whitman two defeats Saturday afternoon in Salem. After pounding out 15 hits to take the first game 10-3, the Bearcats rallied to win the nightcap 8-7.
The Missionaries jumped to an early four-run lead in the second game and took a 7-3 lead into the seventh inning. But the Bearcats scored two in the seventh and three in the eighth to take the victory.
As a team, Whitman combined for 22 hits in the twinbill. Freshman Adam Zaitz had four more hits on Saturday, including a triple, to give him six hits for the series. Ben McPherren also had four hits Saturday, including two doubles. Matt Brewer stroked three singles and stole two bases. Travis Lovejoy added two hits and a stolen base in the second game, while Chris Zintel went two-for-three in game one.
PLU and Whitman traded wins at Borleske Field as the two teams combined for just 15 hits and 12 runs in the double-header. Pitching was the story in both games. PLU took game one, 4-3 and Whitman took the night-cap 3-2.
Junior Chris Garratt pitched an eight inning gem for Whitman in game two allowing two runs on just two hits to get the win. Garratt pitched into the fifth before allowing his first hit of the game. Freshman Matt Brewer pitched a one-two-three ninth inning to get the save.
Whitman took the lead in the first inning on a two-run home run by freshman catcher Adam Zaitz. Zaitz also helped the team by throwing out two runners trying to steal.
With the game tied at two in the seventh inning, Matt Brewer led off with a double. Two batters later, Merril Bevan drove him in with a single to right field to give the Missionaries the lead and ultimately the win.
Jimmy Hill started for the Missionaries and pitched the whole way in the first game, allowing just five hits and two earned runs. With two outs in the final inning, Hill allowed a solo home run that gave PLU the lead and the win.
After falling behind 5-0 early, Whitman rallied twice to claim a 7-6 Northwest Conference victory over Pacific Lutheran Sunday afternoon at Borleske Stadium.
Trailing 6-5 going into the bottom of the ninth inning, Whitman tallied two runs to win for the second time in the three- game weekend series. Merrill Bevan led off the ninth with a single and moved to second on a bunt by David Fee. Pinchrunner Travis Lovejoy scored the tying run on an Andy Tillo single. Tillo then moved to second base on a sacrifice bunt by Adam Zaitz, took third on an infield single by Bobby Jones, and scored on a base hit by freshman Kyle Carothers.
The ninth inning rally marked the second comeback of the day for Whitman. After falling behind early, Whitman slowly chipped away at the PLU lead. Bevan's two-run double in the sixth drew the Missionaries within one run. Matt Brewer tied the game with a solo home run to left field in the eighth for his third RBI of the day.
"Matt Brewer's home run in the eighth was huge, but it was a team effort to win it in the ninth," head coach Travis Feezel said. "Obviously the hits by Merrill, Andy and Kyle were clutch, but we also had two key sacrifice bunts that gave us the opportunity to win."
PLU scored a run in the ninth to take a 6-5 lead, but the situation could have been worse for Whitman. With the bases loaded, one out and one run in, Feezell called sophomore Jack Brink from the bullpen. After getting a groundball force play at the plate, Brink closed out the inning with a strike-out to leave three runners stranded. The win is Brink's first of the season.
Freshman Ben Harris relieved starter Ryan Toivola in the fourth and shut PLU down for five innings. Harris allowed just three hits and one run while striking out five.
"Ben came on in the fourth and didn't give up a run until the ninth and then Jack Brink pitched wonderfully to keep us close," said Feezell. "Those two guys gave us key performances."
Linfield's pitching proved too much for the Missionaries as the Wildcats took both games of a Northwest Conference double- header 1-0 and 5-2 Saturday afternoon at Borleske. The win improves Linfield's record to 12-1 in Northwest Conference play.
Linfield scored one run in the seventh and final inning of game one to get the win. With two outs and the bases empty, Linfield's Ryan Hubka doubled off Whitman pithcer Jimmy Hill and scored on a single by Scott Cannon.
Hill took the hard-luck loss pitching seven innings and allowing the one run on just five hits. Until the run scored in the seventh, Hill faced just one batter more than the minimum thanks to a double-play and an outfield assist by Kyle Carothers.
Linfield's Tim Roupp pitched seven shut-out innings and struck out eight for the victory.
Freshmen Ryan Toivola and Adam Zaitz each collected two hits in the game.
Game two saw more pitching as the remained scoreless until the sixth inning when Whitman finally scored. Adam Zaitz banged a two-out single to center to score Jack Brink. The hit by Zaitz was one of only three for the Missionaries in the game.
Chris Garratt, coming off an excellent performance last week that saw him named NWC Athlete of the Week, once again pitched well. Pitching into the eighth inning, Garratt allowed two runs (only one of which was earned) on five hits, striking out two and walking two.
Linfield rallied for four runs in the eighth inning to break the game open.
Matt Brewer's two-out single plated Bobby Jones in the ninth but Brewer was thrown out trying to take second to end the game.
Linfield and Whitman combined for 22 runs on 27 hits and seven errors, one day after playing a double-header where pitching dominated. Linfield took the Northwest Conference game and swept the series with a 15-7 win Sunday afternoon at Borleske.
The Wildcats jumped out to a huge lead early scoring two in the second, three in the third and four in the sixth to open up a 10-1 lead. Whitman then went to work scoring one in the sixth and five in the seventh to jump back into the game.
With one out in the seventh, Martin Telstad jumped all over a fastball and rode it over the center-field fence more than 400 feet away. Matt Brewer then followed with a home run to left field to make the score 10-4. After Linfield changed pitchers, Whitman continued to rally. With runners at second and third and two outs, Junior Travis Lovejoy banged his third hit of the day to score two, drawing the Missionaries to within three at 10- 7.
Linfield added one in the eight and four more in the ninth to put the game out of reach.
Whitman dropped the first two games of an extended California road trip Wednesday afternoon at Maloney Field in San Francisco. San Francisco State University came out on top 9-5 and 2-1.
SFSU jumped out to an early 7-2 lead in the first game scoring five runs in the second inning. A home run to right field by freshman Kyle Carothers in the third drew Whitman to within four. The home run was one of three hits on the day for Carothers.
Other offensive standouts for the Missionaries included David Fee who went three-for-three with a double and two RBI's. Adam Zaitz collected two more hits and scored two runs.
San Francisco scored single runs in the second and third innings of the second game for the victory. Whitman's lone run came in the fourth when Ben McPherren scored on a double by Merril Bevan.
Jimmy Hill started the game and pitched well giving up two runs, only one of them earned, through four innings. Nat Sampson then came on in relief, pitching two innings, allowing no hits and striking out one.
The Missionaries resume play on Friday as they began a three- game weekend series against California State at Hayward.
Playing the first of a three-game series against Cal-State Hayward, Whitman rallied for a 6-3, come from behind victory Friday afternoon in Hayward, California.
Chris Zintel's three-run home run in the seventh gave Whitman a temporary lead and then a solo shot by Merril Bevan in the eighth put Whitman up to stay.
Cal State jumped out to an early 2-0 lead scoring two unearned runs in the first off of freshman starter Ryan Toivola. Toivola then proceeded to shut CSU down until they finally put up a third unearned run in the seventh inning. Toivola went all the way allowing just five hits, no earned runs, walking three and striking out eight to get the win.
Trailing 2-0 in the seventh, Whitman started their rally. With one out, Matt Brewer doubled and then scored when Ben McPherren grounded to the shortstop who played it into an error. Chris Zintel then stepped up to the plate and blasted his first home run of the year. CSU tied the game at 3-3 in the seventh. Merril Bevan then led of the eighth inning with a home run giving Whitman the lead and the eventual win.
The Missionaries added two more unearned runs in the ninth to seal the victory.
The same two teams play tomorow afternoon.
Cal-State Hayward put up five runs in the first and never looked back on their way to an 11-3 victory over the Missionaries Saturday afternoon in Hayward, California.
The eleven runs by CSU came on only eight hits as Whitman committed five errors. CSU committed four errors of their own but the Missionaries were unable to capitalize.
Travis Lovejoy drove in all three of Whitman's runs in addition to collecting three of the team's seven hits.
The same two teams square off tomorow in the rubber match of the three-game series.
Cal-State Hayward took the third game of a three game set 8-3 Sunday afternoon in Hayward, California to take the series two games to one.
CSU jumped out to an early lead with three runs in the first inning. Whitman got two back in the second. Travis Lovejoy drew a one-out walk and then scored on a double by Ryan Toivola. After Toivola advanced to third on a wild pitch, Kyle Carothers brought him home with a sacrifice fly to left-field.
Whitman added their third run in the fifth. Toivola led off with a single and promptly stole second base. Advancing to third on a fly ball by Adam Zaitz, he once again scored on a sacrifice fly to left-field by Kyle Carothers.
The game concludes a five-day road trip to the bay area for the Missionaries. They will resume NWC play next weekend.
Adam Zaitz, Whitman's freshman catcher, banged home runs in both games of a doubleheader Saturday afternoon at Borleske Stadium, but it wasn't enough to keep visiting Pacific University from posting a pair of Northwest Conference victories. The Boxers took game one 11-7 in seven innings before winning 8-4 in the nine-inning nightcap.
With the two teams tied 2-2 after three innings in the opener, Pacific erupted for seven runs in the fourth and fifth frames to lead 9-2. Whitman rallied in the bottom of the fifth to score five times, pulling to within 9-7. But the Boxers closed out the scoring with a pair of insurance runs in the sixth inning.
Merrill Bevan stroked a pair of singles for the Missionaries in the first game, while Bobby Jones and Matt Brewer both ripped doubles. Jones and Zaitz, who also singled, knocked in two runs apiece.
Leading 4-3 after five innings of game two, Pacific added four runs in the top of the sixth inning to jump in front 8-3. Whitman added one more run in the bottom of the seventh but was unable to dent the scoreboard any further.
The Boxers collected 15 hits in the second game, but six Whitman errors gave the visitors six unearned runs. Zaitz knocked in two more runs, and freshman Kyle Carothers rapped a pair of singles.
With two outs and the bases empty, Central Washington University rallied for a run in the tenth inning to edge the Missionaries 4-3 in non-conference baseball action Wednesday evening at Borleske Stadium.
Freshman Ben Harris, who started on the mound for Whitman, scattered four hits and left after four innings with the game tied at 2-2. David Fee, another freshman, hurled the next five and two-third innings, surrendering the other two CWU runs on five hits. Ryan Toivola, a third freshman, got the final out of the tenth inning.
Senior Merrill Bevan, Whitman's leading hitter this season, knocked in two runs with a double and single. Sophomore Chris Zintel also doubled and scored a run for the Missionaries.
Both teams had 10 hits. Whitman played errorless ball in the field.
Chris Garratt tossed a complete-game, nine-inning six-hitter and Travis Lovejoy stroked four hits to power Whitman to a 6-1 Northwest Conference victory over Lewis & Clark College Friday afternoon at Borleske Stadium.
Garratt struck out nine while walking just one and hitting a batter.
With the score tied 1-1, Whitman took the lead for good with three runs in the sixth inning. The outburst included David Fee's RBI-double and run-scoring singles by Lovejoy and Ben McPherren. The Missionaries added two more runs in the seventh, with Adam Zaitz and Matt Brewer contributing singles and McPherren adding an RBI-sacrifice.
Lovejoy finished with three singles and a double. Brewer also had two hits in the game.
Whitman closed out its season in fine fashion, completing its first three-game sweep of a Northwest Conference opponent in a number of years with 9-4 and 5-4 victories over Lewis & Clark College at Boleske Stadium Saturday.
Following Chris Garratt's lead from the day before, Jimmy Hill and Ryan Toivola hurled complete-game victories for the Missionaries. Hill survived a rocky start in the seven-inning first game, yielding just one hit after the second inning. Ryan Toivola, a freshman, cruised through the first two innings of the nightcap on just 10 pitches and surrendered just three hits and one run over the first eight frames.
With Whitman leading 5-1, Lewis & Clark rallied in the top of the ninth against Toivola, using four singles and walk to cut its deficit to 5-4 with two outs and two runners on base. But Toivola held his composure and got the last out on a line drive to center field. Toivola finished with six strikeouts in posting his second nine-inning complete-game victory in as many starts.
Freshman Kyle Carothers fueled the first-game offense with a double and three singles in four plate appearances. He knocked in three runs and scored two. Sophomore Bobby Jones added four RBI, two of which came on a home run in the second inning. Jones also had a run-scoring single and run-scoring sacrifice fly.
Zaitz and Brewer also had two hits each in the first game.
In game two, Whitman jumped in front for good with three runs in the first three innings. Carothers had a single and two-run double in his first two at-bats, giving him six consective hits. Senior Merrill Bevan also had a single and double in his final game as a Missionary.