LEWISTON, Idaho – Tom Peale had eight strikeouts in seven innings to lead the Lewis-Clark State College baseball team to a 7-1 victory over Gonzaga University on Wednesday. Pitching problems and three Gonzaga errors helped the Warriors jump to 6-1 lead early on—a lead which proved to be more than enough for LCSC’s pitchers.
Peale, a senior from Long Beach, Calif., surrendered only one run, five hits, and a walk to earn his second win of the season, and the one run he did give up, perhaps, could have been avoided.
With the win, LCSC snaps a two-game losing slide and brings its overall record to 6-3. For Gonzaga the game was billed as an exhibition game, so the loss will not affect its overall record.
The Warriors’ offense started rolling with two out in the first inning when Vaughan Prow walked and Sean Halton followed with a single that resulted in both runners taking an extra base off of an error by the left fielder. Kawika Emsley-Pai then shot a single to center field to drive both runners in. Travis Georgius then plated Emsley-Pai with a double to right field.
In the top of the third, Gonzaga put its only run on the board via a lead-off triple by Chris Sturdivant. Sturdivant lifted a shallow fly ball to right field that got passed the diving Halton who went for the catch instead of conceding the hit and fielding the ball on a bounce. One batter later, Jason Chatwood brought Sturdivant home with a single.
In the bottom of the third, the Warriors; with help from a Gonzaga error, two hit batsmen, and a walk; scored three more runs. Emsley-Pai hit a double to center to give the Warriors runners on second and third, and then a groundball was misplayed by the shortstop to bring in a run. Todd Muecklisch was then hit by a pitch to load the bases, which was followed by a walk and another plunked batter to force two more runs in.
Despite its pitching woes, Gonzaga did manage to escape a couple jams that could have made the score look much more lopsided. To end the bases loaded threat in the third, Gonzaga turned a catcher-to-first double play off a check swing by Kyle Melton. Gonzaga also evaded a one out bases loaded situation in the fifth inning.
LCSC stranded 11 of its runners on base during the game.
Lewis-Clark State added its final run in the eighth inning off of three straight singles. One of the singles was by Paul Martin who has now hit safely in all nine of LCSC’s games so far this year.
Peale was relieved by Henry Buenrostro and Matt Stabelfeld who kept Gonzaga hitless in the final two innings. Buenrostro struck out one Bulldog to shut the door in the eighth, and Stablefeld wrapped the game up in the ninth. Peale’s outing is the longest by a Warrior starting pitcher so far this season.
Halton led Warrior hitters with three hits, while Prow and Emsley-Pai both finished with two. Emsley-Pai and Georgius shared the game-high with two RBI apiece.
The Bulldogs, an NCAA D-I school, threw six pitchers at the Warriors and surrendered five walks and 10 hits.
LCSC’s win over Gonzaga stands as the first game this season the Warriors have played without committing an error. Uncharacteristically, the Warriors had 19 errors in their first eight games.
In an update to the original schedule, Lewis-Clark State will stay home and face Corban College this weekend. LCSC was originally scheduled to visit Corban, but poor field in conditions Salem, Ore. called for the series to be moved to Lewiston. The two teams will play a single game at 5 p.m. on Friday and then play a doubleheader on Saturday at 11 a.m.
