Pride bats produce in big moments in series opening doubleheader sweep over Baker

BALDWIN CITY, Kan. - Entering Heart of America Athletic Conference play on a seven-game winning streak, the Clarke University baseball team extended that streak in their Heart opener with a pair of wins in their series opening doubleheader against Baker University on Sunday.

The Pride won the opening game in extra innings as they took a 7-6 final in the ninth inning as they would proceed to jump out to a 7-0 leada in the first two innings of game to on their way to an 11-5 victory over the Wildcats.

Clutch at bats would carry the Pride to a pair of comebacks in the opener as they scored twice in the top of the first but then trailed 3-2 by the end of the bottom half and eventually trail 4-2. Three unanswered runs from CU capped off by a fifth inning Bubba Thompson solo home run made it 5-4 Pride but Baker would bounce back quickly to tie it in the fifth and take a one-run lead heading into the seventh.

A Bryce Hinton one-out single would get the tying run on base as Andrew Swartz came in as a courtesy runner before Maguire Fitzgerald would come up to bat with Clarke down to their final out. Fitzgerald knocked a single into left field to score Swartz from second to tie the game, eventually send it into extras.

In the top of the ninth inning it was Hinton coming up with another big moment as he cracked a solo home run to give the Pride the lead back as Carsie Walker would shut the door with a three-up, three-down inning to clinch that win in the opener. Walker pitched two innings in relief only allowing one hit and striking out a batter to pick up the win as Isaac Rohde also provided more quality innings out of the pen with two scoreless of only one hit allowed while striking out two batters.

The second game was a game of big innings and scoring runs on both sides as CU took that early 7-0 lead with Thompson providing another big swing in the form of a bases clearing double with the bases loaded to score three runs and make it 5-0 before Jordan Sadovia and Taiga Sato added RBI hits to make it 7-0.

The Wildcats would storm back to make it interesting with two runs in the third and three in the fourth to cut it to 7-5 but the Pride would take advantage of some miscues by Baker in the sixth inning, scoring two runs on a throwing error, another on a bases loaded walk, and the final run on a sacrifice fly to push it to the final of 11-5.

Hinton pounded out four more hits in the day's finale after his three hits in the opener including the big home run as Victor Lara also provided two hits, two runs, two walks, and an RBI out of the leadoff spot.

Devan Quesada was able to go five innings to pick up the win as he gave up all five runs on eight hits while striking out seven batters as Walker appeared for an inning with two strikouts and Greg Bennett shut the door in the seventh without giving up a hit and striking out two batters.

Clarke and Baker will square off for two more in Baldwin City, Kan. on Monday for the same start time they had on Sunday with game three's first pitch scheduled for 11:00 a.m. CT at Sauder Field.