NWC Baseball: Bruins Hang On to Beat Pirates

Salem-News.com SPORTS

SPOKANE, Wash. - Relief pitcher Josh Burch tagged out one runner at the plate in the bottom of the 9th inning and catcher Ryan Fobert picked another off first base for the final out of the game, preserving a 5-4 win for the George Fox University Bruins over the Whitworth College Pirates in a Northwest Conference baseball game Sunday afternoon at Merkel Field.

The win improved the Bruins’ overall record to 15-1 and their conference record to 8-1, leaving them in a tie for first in the league with the University of Puget Sound, which swept a doubleheader from Lewis & Clark College Sunday.

The Pirates fell to 6-12 overall and 4-5 the conference.

George Fox scored three runs in the top of the 1st to grab an early lead, all of the runs coming home on Dan Wentzell's fifth home run of the season and second of the series off Whitworth starter Jason Weatherman (0-3).

Bryan Donohue's RBI double brought home another run in the 2nd, and the Bruins upped it to 5-0 in the top of the 7th on Daniel Downs' RBI single.

Preston Langeliers (4-0) blanked the Pirates through six innings but tired in the 7th as the home team scored twice.

J.J. Jones started the Pirates’ comeback attempt with his first home run of the season, then Jon Whiteside scored an unearned run after an error at shortstop.

The Pirates scored twice in the 8th off reliever Drew Johnson to pull within one, Jones and Scott Ward singling home runs.

Leading by a run in the bottom of the 9th, Burch tagged out Dan Ramsey at the plate as Ramsey attempted to score from third on what would have been a wild pitch, but catcher Ryan Fobert got to the ball and threw to Burch in time.

Fobert then picked off Mitch Ramsey at first base for the final out of the game.

Donohue, Downs, Burch, Johnson and Pat Bailey all had two hits for George Fox.

Jones finished the game with three hits for Whitworth, and Ward, Match Ramsey, and Dan Ramsey each had a pair of safeties.

George Fox returns home to host Puget Sound in a three-game showdown for the league lead Mar. 24th-25th, with a doubleheader on Saturday and a single on Sunday, both starting at noon.

Whitworth will travel to Salem, Ore., next weekend to face Willamette University in a three-game conference series, starting with a pair Saturday at noon.

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