McMINNVILLE, Ore. – Linfield led Lewis & Clark for the first half of the game, but the Pioneers woke up their bats to win an 11-5 slugfest Saturday at Roy Helser Field.
Lewis & Clark trailed 3-1 after four frames but scored a combined 10 runs across the fifth through eighth innings. The Pioneers took the lead for good in the sixth inning, sending six runs across the plate on five hits. They outhit the Wildcats 16-11 to improve to 17-7 on the season and 7-5 in Northwest Conference play. The Pios are tied for third place with Willamette.
Jake Hoskins and
Nick Holm both went 2 for 5 with two RBI to fire up the Linfield offense. Holm drove Hoskins in on a first-inning single to open the scoring. The freshman third baseman ripped another RBI base knock in the sixth. Hoskins hit an RBI single in the second inning and cranked his team-leading fourth home run of the season in the eighth.
Tyler Marr and
Trent Wainfeld contributed two hits apiece while
Garrett Moen scored twice. Wainfeld has nine hits in his last five games since entering the starting lineup full time.
Will Heron turned in a 4-for-5 performance with two runs and three RBI to power Lewis & Clark's high-scoring offense. He sent his fourth home run of the season over the batter's eye in center field. The Pios lead Division III with 44 homers. Jakob Ghammachi racked up three hits while Jack Savant drove in three runs of his own.
Linfield starter
John Over was taken out of the game with two outs in the fifth inning. He allowed two runs, one earned, on seven hits.
Wyatt Hurley threw a perfect ninth inning in relief for the 'Cats.
NEXT
The 'Cats (9-13, 6-8 NWC) can still take the series in Sunday's doubleheader. First pitch for Game 2 is set for noon.
