Lewis Fires a No Hitter, and the Bulldogs Sweep Southwestern

Photo by Micah Gilbert

Winfield, Kan. – The McPherson College baseball team went on the road Friday, and picked up two important KCAC wins over Southwestern College, doing so with a little bit of drama.

In the opening game of the series, the drama came on the mound. The Bulldogs gave Josh Lewis (So. Loveland, Colo.), the ball. Lewis was straight dealing, and after seven innings of work, the Moundbuilders had zeros in both the runs column and the hits column. For Lewis, it was the second no hitter of his career, the first coming last season against Manhattan Christian.

On offense, the Bulldogs gave Lewis all the run support he needed. They pounded out ten runs on eight hits, ending the game in seven innings with the run rule. Lane Fleming (Sr. Council Grove, Kan.) led the Bulldog offense with a 3 for 4 performance with three singles, and five RBI. Joining him with multiple hits was Kristopher Perez (Jr. Miramar, Fla.) who was 2 for 5 with a double and three runs scored.

In game two, the Bulldogs looked like they had things locked up midway through the game, and they put it on cruise control. They led 12-5 heading into the bottom of the seventh inning, when the wheels came off. The Moundbuilders scored seven runs in their final at bat, to tie the game at 12, and force extra innings. The Bulldogs regrouped, and scored four runs in the top of the eighth to get a little breathing room again.

Southwestern opened the bottom of the eighth with a solo home run to get back within three runs, and then after two outs, hit another home run to cut the lead to 16-14. The next Southwestern hitter reached base via an error on a ground ball, sending the tying run to the plate with two outs. Fortunately, the Bulldogs' got the next Southwestern hitter to fly out to right field, allowing Mac to escape with the win.

Bulldog head coach, Bryan Moses, commented on the no hitter by Lewis saying, "Josh didn't settle in until after the third, but when he did he was nasty."
 
The Bulldogs used five pitchers to seal the victory, with Garrett Ham (Jr. Albuquerque, N.M.), getting the start, but Blake Slaymaker (Jr. Johnstown, Colo.) picking up the win. Ham worked the first four innings, and was in line to get the win, but when the bullpen allowed the Moundbuilders to tie the game in the seventh, Ham no longer factored into the decision. His stat line finished with two runs on seven hits with four strikeouts and zero walks.

Jarrod Manick (Jr. Aldergrove, B.C.) was the first out of the pen for the Bulldogs. Manick worked just one inning, allowing two runs on two hits with a pair of strikeouts. Next up was Dylan Marble, who allowed just one run on three hits with one walk, and no strikeouts. After Marble, it was Tyler Dunn (So. Lawton, Okla.), who in an inning and a third, was saddled with seven runs, only two of them earned, on three hits with two k's and one walk. Slaymaker came in and stopped the bleeding in the seventh, recording the final out of the inning after walking two of the first three batters he faced, and hitting another. Because the Bulldog offense came back and took the lead in the next half inning, Slaymaker ended up with the decision.  Garrett Connor (Jr. Highlands Ranch, Colo.) worked the final inning. He was charged with two runs on two hits, both of them homeruns, with no strikeouts and no walks.

At the plate, the Bulldogs scored 16 runs on 16 hits including a three run home run by Brevin Bessler (Sr. Gilbert, Ariz.) in the top of the fifth inning. It was part of a 2 for 3 performance that included three runs scored and three RBI. Fleming continued to swing a hot bat, finishing the game 3 for 4 with two doubles, a run scored, and two RBI. Others with multiple hits in the game included Perez, who was 2 for 4 with three runs scored, Kyle Lux (Jr. Lewes, Del.) who was 2 for 5 with three runs scored, and two more driven in, and Pearce McCoy (Jr. Kamloops, B.C.) who went 2 for 5 with a run scored and three RBI.

Coach Moses summed up game two like this, "It wasn't pretty, but we got some timely hits late in the game. It was a very gutty effort by the DOGS."
 
With the wins the Bulldogs are now 9-6 overall, and 4-3 in KCAC play, and currently sitting in third place in the conference standings. They were slated to play a third game against the Moundbuiliders on Saturday, but temperatures forecasted to only be in the twenties, prompted the two teams to postpone the final game of the series to a later date.