CALDWELL, Idaho – The No. 3 LC Warriors pushed their winning streak to 20 games with a sweep of College of Idaho on Saturday. LC State tallied 22 runs between the two games to improve to 26-1 on the season.
Riley Way extended his hitting streak to 18 games with a total of seven hits on the day, and three different Warriors notched a four-hit game. LC turned eight double plays between the two contests.
GAME ONE: LC State def. College of Idaho 14-7
The Yotes put up the game's first run with a solo shot in the bottom of the second. LC responded to take the lead in the third with three runs on two hits.
A.J. Davis got the momentum going with a single to left before taking second on a wild pitch. An error put
Riley Way on first and Davis on third, and a walk to
Zach Threlfall loaded the bases. A base hit by
Aidan Nagle scored one before an error brought in two more.
C of I tied things up in the next half inning, but the Warrior kept the back-and-forth going in the top of the fourth.
Luke White walked to lead off the frame and moved to second on a wild pitch.
Matt James singled to put runners on the corners and Davis drove in one with a hit to right.
The Warriors fell behind in the home half of the fourth when College of Idaho struck for four runs on four hits. Down 7-4, LC answered in a big way with a seven-run fifth inning.
Threlfall doubled to right center and Nagle was hit by a pitch, then both moved into scoring position on a wild pitch. A walk to White loaded the bases, and free passes to James and
Justin Mazzone made it 7-6. Davis put LC in front with a two-RBI single, and a bases-loaded double off the wall in left center by Way made it 11-7.
Greg Blackman saw his first full inning of work in the home half of the fifth and faced the minimum, thanks in part to a double play turned by LC's middle infield. He struck out the side in the sixth and forced another double play in the seventh.
Sam Linscott widened the margin with a two-run homer in the eighth. Way reached on a single up the middle before the blast made it a 13-7 contest. Blackman struck out two more in the bottom of the inning.
LC added one more run in the ninth when
Charlie Updegrave scored as the courtesy runner. Blackman retired the side in order in the ninth to close it out.
Blackman earned his fourth win of the season after striking out five in 5.1 innings. He did not walk a batter or allow a run.
Way and Davis each had four hits in the game and both, along with Linscott, drove in three runs.
GAME TWO: LC State def. College of Idaho 8-7
The C of I bats struck for 12 hits in the second half of the twin bill and threatened to snap the LC streak, but a standout performance by
Cameron Smith in relief helped the Warriors grind out the win.
The Yotes struck first for the second straight game with three runs on three hits in the first. A two-run shot by White brought LC within one, and back-to-back singles by Mazzone and Davis kept the momentum going. Way brought in the pair to put the Warriors in front 4-3, but the lead was short-lived with C of I tying things up in the bottom of the second.
The score remained knotted 4-4 until a four-run sixth inning for LC. Mazzone beat the shift with a bunt and Davis walked to put two on. A single by
Pu'ukani De Sa brought Mazzone across, and a fielder's choice scored Davis.
A double by Threlfall put two on, and Nagle made it an 8-4 lead with a two-RBI double to center.
C of I trimmed the LC advantage to one with three runs on three hits in the eighth.
Bryson Spagnuolo took over on the mound with two outs and forced a ground ball to end the threat. He closed out the game in the ninth to earn the save.
LC State tied a team record with five double plays turned in the nine-inning game, all behind Smith. The Warriors did so in consecutive innings for a program first.
Smith was solid out of the pen with three strikeouts in just over five innings. He allowed only three hits and did not give up a run.
Mazzone led the Warriors in game two with four hits and Way knocked in three runs.
The Warriors wrap up the non-conference series with College of Idaho on Sunday at 10 a.m. PT.
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