SPOKANE – Closer Will Morgan threw 5 2/3 innings of one-hit ball and the Lewis-Clark State College baseball team tied an NAIA record in avenging on of its two losses on the season with an 11-6   nonleague win over Gonzaga University in 13 innings on Tuesday. 

The victory moved the Warriors, ranked No. 1 in the NAIA, to 23-2 on the season, while Gonzaga fell to 16-14. Earlier this season, LCSC lost to Gonzaga 4-3 in what turned out to be the championship game of the round-robin SPORT Banana Belt Baseball Tournament at Lewiston’s Harris Field on March 4. 

Morgan, 2-1, actually blew a save opportunity in the ninth inning with the Warriors ahead 6-4 when an a hit batter and a catcher's interference call allowed Gonzaga to put two runners on with one out. A single by Darin Holcomb and a sacrifice fly by Ryan Weigand then tied the game and forced extra innings. 

Morgan, however, responded in his longest outing of the season by facing the minimum 12 batters in the final four innings. He was also helped by two of LCSC's six double plays. The six double plays tied an NAIA record. The last club to accomplish the feat, according to the NAIA record book, is Westmont of California in the 1984 season. LCSC's old record of five double plays came during the 1977 season. 

Third baseman Beau Mills, who leads the Warriors in hitting, tied a school record for most hits in a game with six as he went 6-for-7 with two RBI and three runs scored. The only other Warrior to get six hits in a game was Pat Mackey, who did it in the 1987 NAIA World Series against Grand Canyon. 

The Warriors led throughout the contest until the ninth inning, scoring solo runs in the first three innings for a 3-0 lead. Jesse Mier's RBI groundout scored the run in the first, while Zach Evangelho added an RBI single in the second. Kyle Greene doubled in a run in the third. 

After Gonzaga answered with two runs in the bottom of the fourth, the Warriors scored two runs in the fifth. Greene had a run-scoring single, while Jessie Roehl added an RBI sacrifice fly. Mills added an RBI double in the sixth to make it 6-2. 

Gonzaga rallied with two runs in the eighth on a two-run home run by Dustin Colclough, and then the rally in the ninth. 

In the 13th, the Warriors sent 11 batters to the plate and collected four hits, one walk, and three batters were hit by pitches during the five-run rally. Mark Thompson brought in the first run when he was hit by a pitch and Mills and Mier followed with RBI singles. Greene finished his solid day at the plate with a two-run double as he went 3-for-6 at the plate with four RBI. 

Warrior starting pitcher Chris Kissock went seven innings and allowed six hits and two runs. He struck out four and walked five. 

LCSC returns to action on Friday for a three-game Region I series against Oregon Tech. The two meet at 6 p.m. Friday and then play a noon doubleheader on Saturday.