Lewis & Clark College

McMINNVILLE, Ore.—Despite an outstanding performance on the mound from junior Owen Eisen in Game One and a late comeback in Game Two, host Linfield University swept Lewis & Clark College baseball on Saturday afternoon at Roy Helser Stadium. 
 
THE BASICS 
 
Linfield 1, Lewis & Clark 0
Linfield 8, Lewis & Clark 6 (11 Innings) 
(Lewis & Clark 21-18, Northwest Conference 13-10)
(Linfield 23-16, NWC 15-8) 

HOW IT HAPPENED
 
Eisen threw the first complete game of his career in game one. The junior allowed just one run, a solo homer to start off the eighth, and limited the hosts to three hits and two walks. 
 
The River Otters found more success in game two but needed a ninth-inning rally to force extras. Linfield second baseman Ely Kennel lifted Linfield to a walk-off win with a two-run homer in the 11^th. 
 
First year Garrett Lewis led Lewis & Clark's offense on Saturday. The first year hit safely in both games and finished 3-8 with two runs, two RBI, a double and a home run. 
 
GAME ONE RECAP 
 
Eisen and three Linfield pitchers engaged in a pitcher's duel that saw the two teams combine for just nine hits, three walks and one run, in a game that last just an hour and 51 minutes. 
 
Eisen put together one of the best and most efficient outings of his career. He needed just 94 pitches to go the full eight innings and scattered three hits, two walks and one run. Eisen tacked on three strikeouts. 
 
Linfield's Matthew Tacheny (five innings), Carter Studer (two innings) and Zach Hampson (two innings) held Lewis & Clark to six hits, one walk and struck out seven.
 
The two teams combined to have just two runners reach third base all game and Lewis & Clark was the only team to put multiple runners on in the same inning. 
 
Junior Eli Steinhaus posted two of the team's six hits. Steinhaus went 2-3 and added a walk. Senior Joaquin Sandoval, juniors Michael Aikawa and Bret Potter and G. Lewis all posted one hit. 
 
Eisen was dominant to start the game. He retired the side in order in the first two frames and sat down nine of the first 10 batters he faced. Linfield didn't record their first hit until the leadoff batter of the fourth inning. Kennel led off the fourth with a single and moved to third with one out, but Eisen struck out the next batter and induced a lineout to left to get out of the inning. 
 
Eisen would allow just one walk and one hit over the next three frames to keep the Wildcats offense quiet. 
 
The River Otters put together their best scoring chance in the top of the eighth. With two outs, Steinhaus walked and Aikawa followed with a single to put two runners on. Hampson recorded a fly out to center to keep the score tied. 
 
Linfield's Josh Mansur led off the top of the eighth inning with a home run to left-center for the game's only run. 
 
Hampson would retire Lewis & Clark in order in the ninth to seal the win. 
 
GAME TWO RECAP 
 
Lewis & Clark rallied from a 5-1 deficit to tie the game with two outs in the ninth, but Linfield escaped with an 8-6 win in 11 innings.
 
G. Lewis led the River Otters with a double, a home run, two runs scored and two RBI. Aikawa chipped in two hits, a run scored, an RBI and a walk. Sophomore Will Michelman chipped in a hit, a run scored, an RBI and a walk and junior Gavin Mangano recorded the final RBI. 
 
Sophomore Sam Burchi threw the opening four innings. The lefty allowed six hits, two walks and five runs and struck out three. Senior Nate Kerr kept Lewis & Clark in the game by allowing two hits and one run over the next four innings. Sophomore Matt Stanislavsky threw the final 2.2 innings and struck out five, while allowing three hits and two runs scored. 
 
Lewis & Clark took their only lead of the day in the top of the first inning. Aikawa started the rally with a one-out single and Potter reached on an error to put two on with one out. Michelman singled to right field to score Aikawa but Colton Ouellette induced a double play to close out the frame. 
 
Linfield scored twice in the first and added three more runs in the second to grab a 5-1 lead. Wyatt McClory and Cole Snidow posted back-to-back RBI doubles in the first and Cole Hubka added an RBI double in the second. 
 
The Wildcats added one more run in the sixth - when they executed a double steal with two down. 
 
Lewis & Clark cut the deficit to 6-3 in the sixth. Michelman worked a one-out walk and G. Lewis crushed a two-run homer to left-center with two down. 
 
Kerr would hold the hosts to just one base runner over the next three innings to give Lewis & Clark a shot at a comeback. 
 
In the ninth inning, G. Lewis started the rally with a one-out double. Junior Evyn Lewis worked a walk and G. Lewis advanced to third on a wild pitch. Mangano made it 6-4 with a sacrifice fly that plated G. Lewis. Lewis & Clark loaded the bases with two down thanks to a Brandon Gonzaga walk and a Steinhaus single. Aikawa hit a grounder deep into the hole at shortstop and the throw to first bounced past the first baseman to allow the game-tying run to score. 
 
Stanislavsky came on for the bottom of the ninth and struck out three of the four batters he faced to send the game to extras. 
 
Lewis & Clark had chances to score in the 10^th and 11^th. In the 10^th inning, senior Joaquin Sandoval walked with one down but the River Otters hit into a double play. The visitors loaded the bases in the 11^th. E. Lewis singled, Mangano was hit by a pitch and Aikawa worked a two-out walk. Linfield reliever Jacob Bishop posted an inning-ending strikeout to leave the bases stranded. 
 
With two down in the 11^th, Hubka singled and Kennel followed with a two-run homer to right field to lift the hosts to an 8-6 win. 
 
BY THE NUMBERS 

• With the two wins, Linfield secured the second seed in next Friday's NWC Tournament. The River Otters (13-10) are tied with the University of Puget Sound (13-10) for third place. Lewis & Clark owns the tiebreaker over the Loggers thanks to their 2-1 series win over Puget Sound in March. 
• Potter is tied for second in program history with his 62 hits in a single-season. He matched Michael Ball ('12) who recorded 62 hits in his senior season. Potter is just three hits shy of matching Scott Russel's record of 65 hits in 1990. 
• Eisen is the first Lewis & Clark pitcher to throw eight innings this season and accomplished the feat for the second time in his career. He threw eighth innings against Linfield on March 23, 2024. 
• Potter saw his 26-game reached base streak come to a close in game two on Saturday. Steinhaus (12 games) and Sandoval (11 games) are now the active leaders on the team. 
• Aikawa moved into the top-10 in program history for walks in a single-season (29) in game two. He is currently tied for ninth with Brennen Davis (2023) and Kris Isaacs (1998). 

WHO'S NEXT 
 
Lewis & Clark will close out the regular season with a single game on Sunday against Linfield. The River Otters can clinch the three seed with a win or a Puget Sound loss. First pitch is scheduled for Noon in McMinnville.