WALLA WALLA, Wash. – Scoreless through seven innings and trailing by five, Linfield erupted for eight runs in the top of the eighth to storm back and defeat Whitman 8-5 on Saturday afternoon at Borleske Stadium. The victory completed a three-game Northwest Conference sweep for the Wildcats, who improved to 20-13 overall and 10-8 in NWC play.
After being shut out for most of the game, Linfield flipped the script in a chaotic eighth inning, taking advantage of three Whitman errors and delivering several clutch at-bats to turn a 5-0 deficit into an 8-5 lead.
The Wildcats sent 15 batters to the plate in the eighth, collecting six hits, three walks, and two hit-by-pitchs to fuel the comeback.
Nick Holm delivered the biggest swing of the frame with a two-run single. He finished 1-for-5 with two RBI.
Trent Wainfeld went 2-for-4 with a walk and an RBI single, while Hunter Klingelhofer entered as a pinch hitter and added an RBI single and a stolen base.
Tyler Marr,
Josh Mansur,
Marco Santulli, and
Rylan Gullard each drove in a run as well, with Gullard doubling and Santulli reaching base four times with three walks and a single.
Wainfeld, Marr, Mansur, Klingelhofer, Gullard and Santulli each had an RBI in the eighth inning, which also featured two run-scoring walks and a hit batter with the bases loaded.
Sophomore
Matthew Tacheny started and gave Linfield 4.2 strong innings, allowing just one run on three hits while forcing eight groundouts.
Zach Johnson and
Zack Hampson carried the Wildcats through the later innings, with Hampson earning the win after throwing 2.1 innings and striking out three. He allowed one run on three hits and improved to 2-0 on the season.
The Wildcats' defense turned two double plays and committed no errors for the ninth time this season.
After scoring 44 runs across the three games—including a program-record-tying 29 in Friday's opener—Linfield secured its first NWC series sweep of the season and reached the 20-win mark for the first time since 2022.
NEXT
The Wildcats travel to Newberg for a midweek game against George Fox on Wednesday before returning home for a final home series against Puget Sound over the weekend.
