LEWISTON, Idaho — Third-seeded Westmont ran into an error-bump Wednesday in its quest to win the Avista NAIA World Series Championship, suffering a 10-3 loss to top-seeded Southeastern University of Florida.
Multiple errors on the part of the Warriors, along with four home runs by the Fire, put Westmont in a 10-0 hole by the fifth inning.
The Warriors lost for the first time in the series after three wins. They will face the Southeastern Fire again Thursday, with the winner taking on Lewis-Clark State in Friday’s championship game.
Westmont is now 46-9, and Southeastern is 58-5.
“I think early on in the game, we let the thought of being in the final three get to us a little bit and got out of our game,” Westmont head coach Tyler LaTorre said.
“Southeastern is a really good team and there is less of a margin of error. I know that we will respond correctly. I am happy and excited to get back out here tomorrow and compete against those guys again.”
The Warriors gave up 10 runs over the second through fifth innings to fall behind 10-0. Multiple errors and the Fire home runs resulted in most of the scoring.
Starter Carlos Moreno took the loss for the Warriors. He gave up seven runs (five earned) on four hits. In two and two-third innings, he struck out four and walked one.
“I think Los deserved better,” assessed LaTorre. “I am super proud of the effort that he gave — especially with the adversity he has battled his whole career, and especially this year. I thought he deserved a little bit better effort out of us as a whole.”
Sean Youngerman relieved Moreno on the mound with two away in the third and retained pitching duties through the eighth inning. In five and one-third, he allowed three runs on three hits, struck out four and walked two.
Christopher Ceballos pitched a scoreless ninth inning. He gave up two hits and a walk, while striking out two.
Westmont got on the board with a single run in the sixth inning. Robbie Haw reached on a walk to start the inning before reaching third on a ground out by Ryan DeSaegher. Then, Bryce McFeely put the ball in play and reached on an error, allowing Haw to score.
In the seventh inning, Daniel Patterson reached on a walk and advanced to second when Michael Soper was hit by a pitch. With two outs, Haw singled to left, allowing Patterson to score.
Jack Fletcher led off the eighth inning with a double to left center before reaching third on a groundout by McFeely. A double by Parker O’Neil to second allowed Fletcher to score.
“I was really enthused with how we responded late in the game, putting our at bats together,” said LaTorre.
“I don’t think this game today defines our season,” LaTorre said. “It is not indicative of what we have gone through this year and I am excited for the opportunity to play another game. In the fall, we talked about having an opportunity to play in June.
“I think we will be the only team in school history that has ever played in June. That is something special and is a testament to the body of work that we have done.”