LA MIRADA, Calif. - The Claremont-Mudd-Scripps baseball team earned a 9-7 win over Cal Lutheran in the first game of a doubleheader on Saturday to secure the top seed in the SCIAC Tournament, and then picked up a 15-4 win in the nightcap to secure the outright SCIAC regular season title, its first since 1990, as the Stags celebrated their Senior Day with a big doubleheader sweep on Saturday at Biola University.
Blaise Heher, one of the 12 seniors honored before the game, homered in both contests, including a two-run walkoff shot in the bottom of the seventh of the nightcap to enforce the 10-run rule. CMS improves to 29-11 overall and 18-6 in the SCIAC, and will serve as the host of the SCIAC Tournament from Thursday-Sunday at Azusa Pacific University.
CMS came into the doubleheader with a one-game lead on both Redlands and Pomona-Pitzer, while holding tiebreakers over both teams due to winning the season series. One win would secure the top seed in the tournament and at least a share of the regular season title, while two wins would put the Stags alone in first.
The opening game was a tight one, as Cal Lutheran responded to CMS jumping out to an early lead.
Dillon Martin, who had five RBI in the series opener yesterday, opened the scoring with an RBI single in the first, and Heher followed with a two-run shot to make it 3-0 in the second.
Cal Lutheran surged ahead 6-4 in the fifth, but Heher tied it with a two-run single in the fifth, before
Alex Henderson put the Stags ahead to stay with a two-run shot in the sixth.
Keegan Cabrera then added an insurance run with a solo shot in the eighth.
The Kingsmen put pressure on the Stags in the ninth, closing the gap to 9-7 and putting two on with one out, but graduate student
Jacob Young, who was honored for Senior Day, secured the first SCIAC title in 36 years for the Stags with a strikeout to end it.
Heher finished 3-for-4 with four RBI, while Martin and
Max Pemberton were each 3-for-4 as well. Senior
Aaron Herst threw one inning of shutout relief, graduate student
Brayden Thomas got the win with a shutout inning as well, and Young earned his second save.
The nightcap saw Heher hit 3-for-5 with two RBI to cap off a six-RBI doubleheader. Henderson homered again, as part of a three-RBI performance, and senior
Bryce Didrickson drove in two.
Rider Gordon was 4-for-5, and
Carter Bennett was 3-for-5 with three RBI.
Senior
Andrew Blackett started for the Stags and stuck out five, while
Colin McNiven got the win with 3.1 innings of no-hit relief, striking out five.
The senior class was honored between games, including Heher, Herst, Didrickson, Blackett, Thomas, Young,
Bryant Smaaladen,
Bryan Garcia,
Kody Perry,
Dominic Rolla,
Slader Spoor, and
Jett Shue.
CMS will open play in the SCIAC Tournament on Thursday as the top seed, facing the winner of the opening round game between Chapman and La Verne, the No. 4 and No. 5 seeds.
