Westmont Baseball (20-6, 17-6 PacWest) split a doubleheader with Hawai’i Hilo (11-19, 10-16) on Thursday at Russ Carr Field, earning a 3-1 series win over the Vulcans. The Warriors won the first game 9-7 before falling 10-8 in the second.

The Vulcans jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first inning of the early game. Kolby Gushiken hit the first pitch of the game over the left field fence to get the inning started. Then, Kaiden Sonoda-Fukumoto walked, then reached third when Evan Merz singled down the right field line. A wild pitch allowed Sonoda-Fukumoto to scoreG while Mertz took second. Mertz later scored on a single up the middle by Colby Rafail.

Westmont responded with a seven-run second inning. The inning started with Noah Williams being hit with a 3-2 pitch. One out later, Rolen Reyes reached on an error advancing Williams to second. That brought up Griffin Brown who doubled to left center, scoring Williams and moving Mora to third.

Isaac Veal, who went four for four in the game, followed suit, doubling to left to tie the score when Brown and Mora scored. Then, Grant Yzermans pounded an RBI-triple to left field, giving Westmont a 4-3 lead.

After Joey Rico walked on a full count, Jessie Di Maggio was hit by a pitch and the Warriors had the bases loaded with one out. Tanner Beltowski was also hit by a pitch that allowed Yzermans to score. Williams came back up to the plate for the second time in the inning and knocked a two-RBI single up the middle to plate Di Maggio and Rico and make the score 7-3.

The score remained the same until the top of the fifth when the Vulcans added a run on an RBI-single by Hunter Gatti. Then in the top of the sixth, Hilo added two more runs on an RBI-single by Sonoda-Fukumoto and an RBI-double by Mertz. That pulled the Vulcans within one run (7-6).

In the bottom of the seventh, the Warriors increased their advantage by a run. With one away, Williams walked on four pitches. A wild pitch allowed Williams to reach not only second, but also third. With the infield playing up, Reyes hit a ground ball to the right-hand side of the infield. Williams broke for home, beating the throw to the plate to make it an 8-6 game.

Then in the bottom of the eighth, Isaac Veal lofted a lead-off home run over the left field fence that traveled 334 feet.

Leading 9-6, Westmont headed into the top of the ninth. Three singles in a row by the Vulcans made the score 9-7 when Merz scored. Another single by Rafail loaded the bases with one out. That’s when Brandon Tatch was called on to take the mound and shut the door. Tatch struck out the first batter he faced on three pitches for the second out. That brought up Kawana Soares who lined a 3-2 pitch to Reyes at third for the final out of the game.

Rico started the game on the mound for the Warriors and worked four and one-third innings. He allowed four runs (three earned) on six hits, striking out three. Josh Hickey, who picked up the win, pitched four innings, allowing three runs on nine hits, striking out three. Tatch earned his fourth save of the year.

The Vulcans scored first again in the second game, posting two runs in the second inning. The first was on a sacrifice bunt by Austin Hays that scored Hunter Gatti. The second was on a sacrifice fly by Gushiken the plated Rafail.

In the bottom of the fourth, Westmont evened the score. With two outs and men on second and third, Aiden Voyles singled to center field, driving in Williams and Beltowski.

In the top of the fifth, Hilo retook the lead (3-2) with a sacrifice fly by Merz that scored Gushiken.

The Vulcans’ lead, however, was short lived. Yzermans singled down the left field line to lead off the top of the fifth, then took third when Rico singled to center field. That set up Di Maggio for his two-RBI double off the left field fence, giving the Warriors a 4-3 lead. After Beltowski walked, Williams powered a three-run home run to right center to make the score 7-3.

The top of the sixth, however, proved to be the Warriors’ undoing. Two walks, five singles and a double resulted in seven runs for the Vulcans and a 10-7 lead.

Westmont would get one run back in the bottom of the sixth when Williams singled in Yzermans from second, but that was as close as the Warriors would get.

The Warriors, now a bit over halfway through the regular season, find themselves in second place in the PacWest standings, five and one-half games behind first-place Point Loma (27-4, 23-1).

The Warriors have a three and one-half game over third-place Jessup (17-11, 13-9) and Concordia (16-16, 14-10). Those two teams are the Warriors’ next two opponents. On April 3-4, Westmont will travel to Irvine to take on Concordia. Then on April 10-11, Westmont will host Jessup.