Brian Gaylord and Alfonso Casillas continued their torrid hitting against Corban on Saturday as the pair combined for 10 hits and nine RBI to help the Lewis-Clark State College baseball team sweep its third straight doubleheader from the Salem, Ore., school, this time 12-6 and 15-2 at LCSC’s Harris Field.
LCSC improved to 30-13 overall and 19-8 in NAIA West play, while Corban falls to 9-37 and 4-23.
In the six-game series, LCSC outscored Corban 77-10 in the matchup of teams nicknamed the Warriors.
“It was a good weekend for us to build on,” LCSC coach Gary Picone said. “I thought we maintained our focus for three straight days.”
Saturday’s contests also were lopsided, although a four-run ninth inning by Corban in the opener made the score respectable. The second contest went only seven innings after LC had 10 runs and 15 hits through the first three innings.
Gaylord and Casillas, who switched off as first baseman and designated hitter in Saturday’s two games and hit third and fourth in the lineup, combined for three home runs on the day. Both went deep in the opener while Gaylord hit his team-leading ninth home run in the second game.
Both finished the day 5-for-9 at the plate. Gaylord, a senior from La Mirada, Calf., drove in five runs and scored four times, while Casillas, a junior from Indio, Calif., had four RBI and scored three times.
Casillas had a monster six-game series as he went 17-of-29 (.586) at the plate with 13 RBI and nine runs scored. He had an extra base hit in five of the six games and finished with five doubles, one triple and two home runs.
Gaylord also had a big series as he was 13-of-28 with 10 RBI and 10 runs scored. Both of his home runs came during Saturday’s sweep.
For the first time in series, however, LCSC trailed when Corban scored twice in the top of the third inning of the opener for a 2-1 lead. That was short lived, however, as Trent Bridges blasted a two-run home run and Gaylord followed with a solo home run to put LCSC ahead for good at 4-2.
Gaylord added an RBI double in the fifth, while Jake Eccles hit his second home run of the season, a three-run blast in the sixth, to make it 8-2.
LC then put together a four-run seventh for a 12-2 advantage. Casillas hit a two-run home run, LCSC’s season-high fourth of the game, while Aaron DeGuire added an RBI triple and scored on Gino Casini’s RBI single.
Corban, which had been held to 10 total hits in the first four games, erupted for four hits and four runs in the ninth. Lance Foster had a two-run double to highlight the inning and finished with three hits and three RBI.
Austin Pentecost, the second of three Warrior pitchers, went five innings and allowed only two hits and one walk to earn the win. He also struck out four to improve to 2-0 on the season.
Casini finished with a pair of hits and scored twice for LCSC, while Eccles and Bridges each finished with three RBI. Gaylord was 3-for-5 with two RBI and two runs scored, while Casillas was 2-for-5 with two RBI and one run scored.
In the second game, LC fell behind 1-0 in the top of the first, but score at least two runs in five of the six innings it batted in before the two coaches agreed to end the game in the seventh inning.
LC used five singles to score three runs in the first inning. Casillas drove in the first run with a single, while Casini added a two-run single to left-center field.
Bridges hit an RBI double in the second, while Casillas added an RBI single to make it 5-1.
LCSC broke the game open in the third with six hits to produce five runs. Bridges again started the scoring with an RBI single, while Gaylord smashed a three-run home run to right field. Kevin Lovelace added an RBI sacrifice fly.
After Corban scored its second run in the top of the fifth, the Warriors picked up three runs in the bottom of the inning. Braxton Miller and Connor Moore had RBI single, while Bryan Abrey added an RBI on a sacrifice fly.
Lovelace and Garrett Patterson had back-to-back RBI doubles in the sixth to complete the scoring.
Gaylord went 2-for-4 with three RBI and two runs scored, while Casillas went 3-for-4 with two RBI and two runs scored. Bridges went 3-for-5 with two RBI and three runs scored, while Casini was 3-for-3 and two RBI. Lovelace finished 2-for-3 with two RBI and two runs scored, while Kyle Knigge didn’t enter the game until the fourth inning but still went 2-for-2 with two runs scored. Moore went 3-for-4.
LCSC finished with 24 hits in the game as every starter had at least one.
Jorge Sanchez, the first of three LCSC pitchers, went four innings and allowed four hits and a run to pick up the win and move to 2-0 on the season. Carsen Nylund retired all six batters he faced over the last two innings, including four by strikeouts. Of Corban’s 21 outs in the game, 13 were by strikeouts.
LCSC will wrap up NAIA West play this week in a four-game series against the College of Idaho in Caldwell. The two teams meet at 3 p.m. Thursday, then play a doubleheader on Friday and a single game Saturday, both starting at noon, Pacific time.
