By Beth Renkoski
02/11/09
Vanguard Wins Suspended GSAC-Opener at Biola
Chris Carls
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Zachary Leighton
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La Mirada, Calif. - The Vanguard Lions opened the GSAC baseball schedule today in La Mirada facing the Biola Eagles in a 2:00 p.m. match up. The Lions took a 6-5 lead in the top of the ninth, but the game was suspended in the bottom of the ninth inning due to darkness. Continued and completed prior to the regularly scheduled GSAC contest on Thursday, March 26th, the VU Lions held on for the 6-5 victory.
Vanguard took a 2-1 lead in the top of the second inning on a two-run homer by Nick Akins and added a pair of runs in the third inning when Jacob Wood tripled home Zach Leighton and scored on a throwing error on the play.
VU’s senior Chris Carls allowed one run in the first three innings but ran into trouble in the bottom of the fourth inning. Brandon Godfrey relieved Carls with the bases loaded and one out with the second Biola run already on the scoreboard. The Eagles tied the score with all three runs being charged to Carls.
The Eagles took a 5-4 lead off Godfrey in the bottom of the fifth on a home run by Vinnie Fayard, and that lead would hold until the top of the seventh inning. The Lions tied the game when they loaded the bases and junior Mike Anderson hit a sacrifice fly to tie the game at five all.
Just before the game was suspended the Lions loaded the bases with one out in the top of the ninth. Anderson picked up VU’s final RBI on a grounder up the middle.
Anderson also picked the Lions up with some clutch pitching. He entered with the bases loaded and two outs in the seventh inning and struck out pinch hitter Brent Opdyke for the final out.
The game was resumed at 2:00 p.m. today (March 26th) in the bottom of ninth inning from the point of suspension. Senior Rich Jessup began the ninth inning on the mound for the Lions. Jessup struck out the first batter he faced before giving up a single and then a two-out walk to the Eagles. Jessup eventually recorded the final out and his first save of the season in the process, allowing the teams to begin the regularly scheduled contest.
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