FRESNO, Calif.—Host Fresno Pacific used a couple of solid pitching performances to sweep Hawai`i Hilo on Monday afternoon at the FPU Diamond, getting revenge and salvaging a series split with 3-0 and 5-2 victories.
The Vulcans dropped to 11-13 on the year with the losses and to 7-9 in the Pacific West Conference. The Sunbirds climbed back up to .500 with the victories at 11-11 on the year and to 8-8 in conference play.
It was the third straight series split in the PacWest for the Vulcans, who had only three series splits in all of 2017.
In the first game, UH Hilo's
Drew Ichikawa and FPU's Nic Boatman squared off in a pitcher's duel, each putting zeros on the scoreboard through the first six innings of play. For Ichikawa, it was just his second start of the season and by far his most effective outing.
The junior right-hander pitched six innings (76 total pitches) and allowed only four hits, no runs, and two walks. He left the game as the contest headed into the seventh inning. Meanwhile, Boatman got similar results although he was working out of trouble more often. The Vulcans had two runners on base in the first, third, sixth and eighth innings, but could not score.
In the bottom of the seventh,
Brandyn Lee-Lehano entered in place of Ichikawa. He should have been out of the inning 1-2-3, but an error, followed by a walk chased him from the hill, and the next batter Adam Aleman ripped a double to bring home two runners. A single by Hunter Villanueva brought in another run to make the score 3-0.
Still, the Vulcans had a golden opportunity to score in the ninth inning.
Dylan Sugimoto singled off Boatman to lead off the inning, his last pitch of the game.
Kyle Yamada walked and
Jonathan Segovia singled to load the bases with no outs. Sunbird reliever Tyler Rumbaugh then came into the contest and got a strikeout and a ground ball double play to end the game.
The Vulcans had eight hits to FPU's six. Yamada, Segovia and
Jaryn Kanbara had two hits each, with one of Kanbara's a two-bagger. Aleman had a double and two hits for the Sunbirds.
In the second game, the Sunbirds got on the board early with an unearned run in the second inning after an error, hit batter, a walk and a passed ball. In the third inning, Aleman led off the inning with another double and would later score on a sacrifice fly against Vulcan starter
Travis Burleson.
In the fourth, things came unhinged for Burleson and UHH when Eddie Sievers blasted a three-run homer to give the home team a 5-0 lead. Meanwhile Sunbird starter Josue Mendivil was dancing out of trouble, allowing a triple to
Phillip Steering in the first inning and getting out of a bases loaded jam in the second.
Mendivil then put UH Hilo down in order in the third and fourth innings, but the Vulcans finally got on the board in the fifth.
Edison Sakata led off the inning with a single and Sugimoto brought him home with a double. Segovia then singled home Sugimoto to make it a 5-2 game.
But Mendivil got back on track, shutting down the Vulcans in order in the sixth and seventh innings to pick up his first win of the season (1-2). He pitched a complete seven inning game, scattering six hits with one walk and six strikeouts.
Sakata had two of UH Hilo's hits, including a double. Burleson took the loss (1-4).
The Vulcans will now travel to St. George, Utah for a four-game series with Dixie State that begins on Thursday with a single game at starts at 6 pm Mountain time.
