Sweep Saver
4/14/2012 2:42:00 AM | Baseball
The Lancers won the opener 3-1 as Bengard picked up his 10th win of the season. They got six strong innings from Rivera to complete the sweep with a 7-4 win in the nightcap. Both games were seven innings
The sweep improves the conference-leading Lancers to 33-8 overall, 26-5 PacWest. The 'Lopes, who had won 11 of 14 coming in, including yesterday's series opener, fall to 20-19, 17-14.
In the opener, Blair Moore hit a two run shot in the first and Zach Esquerra added a solo blast in the second, and that was all Bengard, who took a no hitter into the sixth, needed. He walked four and struck out one, but allowed just the two hits and one run to move to 10-0.
Bengard becomes the seventh Lancer ever to get 10 wins and the first since Drew Madrigal and Taylor Siemens both won 11 in 2010.
The 'Lopes, who scored a run in the first on a walk, wild pitch, error and fielder's choice, got their first hit on a Joey Bristyan single with one out in the sixth. Bengard was aided by a trio of double plays.
Grand Canyon threatened in the seventh, loading the bases with two outs, but Daugherty got Aaron Mees to ground out to first to end the game.
Moore had two hits and two RBIs. Kevin Odom had two hits as well as the Lancers had seven hits as a team.
CBU took an early lead in the second game on an RBI single from Moore in the first. Then in the third, the Lancers got three straight RBI singles by Matt Marnati, Moore and Daugherty and another from Ryan Douglass to key a five-run inning.
Esquerra homered in the fifth to make it 7-1.
Rivera (4-0) allowed just six hits and one earned run in 6.2 innings, striking out eight. He carried a 7-1 lead into the seventh, but a leadoff error, a single and two walks, his only two of the game, ended his day.
The 'Lopes got within 7-4, scoring three unearned runs in the inning and then loaded the bases with two outs, bringing the winning run to the plate. However, after falling behind 3-0 to last night's hero Derek Mendoza, Daugherty struck out Mendoza looking to end the game and get his sixth save of the season.
Crowley, Moore, Esquerra and Douglass all had two hits apiece. Moore had two RBIs again, finishing the doubleheader 4 for 7 with four RBIs.
The four-game series finale is a nine-inning game Saturday at Noon.
