WALLA WALLA, Wash. – Whitman took the series opener in extra innings, but Linfield bounced back to take the nightcap and force a split of the doubleheader Saturday at Borleske Stadium.
The Wildcats (9-10, 6-6 NWC) will enter Sunday's finale with a .500 record in Northwest Conference play. A win in Game 3 would bring them to an even 10-10 overall.
GAME 1: Whitman 2, Linfield 1 (11 innings)
Tyler Marr and
Trent Wainfeld both notched a pair of hits to lead Linfield at the plate. Marr drove in
Cameron Skinner in the second inning for the Wildcats' lone run of the game.
John Over threw one of his best games of the season. The lefty tossed six scoreless innings, allowing just two hits while striking out three.
Nick Alder struck out another three Whitman batters in two scoreless innings in relief of Over.
The Wildcats were on the verge of completing their first shutout of the season. But Whitman's Mateus Conaway tripled to center field to lead off the bottom of the ninth inning. The next batter, Ben Parker, sent the game to extras when he ripped a single to left to send Conaway across the plate as the tying run.
Parker went 3 for 4 and drove in both runs for the Blues. He walked it off in the 11
th inning with his seventh home run of the season.
GAME 2: Linfield 6, Whitman 3
Whitman put up three runs in the first inning, but Linfield scored six unanswered on eight hits to even the series and force Sunday's rubber match.
Linfield registered eight hits for the second straight game. Wainfeld got the Wildcat bats going with a two-run shot over the fence in the second inning. It was the first homer of the freshman's young career and the ninth for the 'Cats in 2023.
Jake Hoskins and
Branden Pasion both collected two hits and finished with a run scored and an RBI. Pasion hit an RBI single in the fifth inning while Hoskins had one of his own in the ninth.
Jackson Koons improved to 2-2 on the mound with his first pitching victory since his outing at George Fox on Feb. 18. He allowed three runs, two earned, on five hits with two punchouts.
Grant Knox threw 3 1/3 scoreless innings in relief while
Connor Nelson picked up the final eight outs without allowing a hit.
NEXT
First pitch for Game 3 is scheduled for noon. A victory for Linfield would clinch back-to-back series wins for the 'Cats, who will play at Willamette in a non-conference game on Wednesday.
