LEWISTON, Idaho – Blake Keitzman stifled the Warrior lineup to just five hits in eight innings as the Lewis-Clark State College baseball team fell to Western Oregon 6-3 on Monday at Harris Field. The win for the Wolves denied the Warriors a sweep of the three-game series.
Despite winning the series 2-1, the Warriors were outhit 38-19 in the three games with Monday’s contest being no exception.
Keitzman held LCSC to just one hit in the first four innings and struck out seven as he improved his season record to 5-0.
Lewis-Clark State’s only run production against Keitzman came in the fifth inning when Kyle Melton drew a walk, Paul Martin followed with a double, and Josh Ashenbrenner drove them both in with a single up the middle.
Other than the fifth, the Warriors only other run came in the ninth inning from a leadoff single by Melton and a sacrifice fly by Ashenbrenner to bring him home.
Western Oregon, on the other hand, plated two runs in the first, three in the fifth, and one in the sixth.
The first three batters in the Wolves’ lineup accounted for much of the run production. Leadoff batter Travis Fox finished 3-for-5; Eric Renander had two hits, two runs, and a run batted in; and No. 3 hitter Drew Humphrey finished 2-for-4 with two RBI, and a run scored.
Bill Clontz and JJ Mascolo also finished with two hits apiece.
For the Warriors, Ashenbrenner was the only player with multiple hits as he went 3-for-4 and drove in all three runs.
Warrior hitters struck out eight times—the second most this season.
The loss drops LCSC, currently ranked No. 6 in the NAIA, to 25-9, while the Wolves improve to 22-9.
After seven straight games at home, the Warriors head to Spokane, Wash., to take on Whitworth on Tuesday at 3 p.m. Then on Thursday and Friday LCSC will be in Caldwell, Idaho, to face College of Idaho. Thursday’s game is set for 1 p.m., while Friday’s game will be at noon.
