AZUSA, Calif. – The Chaminade University baseball team wrapped up their Pacific West Conference opening series on Monday with a doubleheader split of Azusa Pacific at the Cougars Baseball Complex.
The Silverswords won the first game, 9-4, while the Cougars took the seven-inning nightcap, 15-2, as the teams split the four-game series.
Safea Villaruz-Mauai (Hilo, Hawai'i/BYU/Waiakea HS) homered twice, including the program's first-ever grand slam in the opener, and had five total hits in the series. Chaminade is 3-4 overall and 2-2 in the PacWest.
Azusa Pacific (4-7, 2-2 PacWest) hit 11 home runs in the series.
Monday's twin bill were makeups from rainouts last Thursday and Friday.
Game 1: CUH 9, APU 4
Chaminade spotted Azusa Pacific the game's first run in the second inning with a solo homer from Elijah Cook, the Cougars' eighth of the series.
After a
Casey Kudell (Irvine, Calif./Irvine Valley College/Irvine HS) RBI single in the third, the 'Swords loaded the bases then had a swat of their own. Villaruz-Mauai promptly unloaded them by clobbering a 1-0 pitch over the centerfield wall for a grand slam, Chaminade's first round-tripper this season, giving them a 5-1 lead.
APU answered with two more long balls to close within 5-4 but the 'Swords countered in the seventh with Kudell's second RBI of the game followed by RBIs off a
Harrison Clark (Snoqualmie, Wash./Bellevue College/Mount Si HS) double and a pinch-hit single by
Andrew Karns (Coeur d'Alene, Idaho/Coeur d'Alene).
Benny Nazario (San Pablo, Calif./College of Marin/Pinole Valley HS) made it 9-4 in the eighth on a run-producing single.
Chris Cody (Orange, Calif./Irvine Valley College/El Modena HS) went 5 1/3 with four strikeouts to improve to 2-1 on the season.
Mac Zawistoski (Coto de Caza, Calif./JSerra Catholic) tossed the final 3 2/3 hitless frames to earn the save.
Kudell and Villaruz-Mafea each had two hits each for Chaminade, which had nine total.
Blake Hagerty took the loss for the Cougars.
Game 2: APU 15, CUH 2
The 'Swords opened the scoring with a Nazario RBI groundout in the third inning while the Cougars got the run back in the bottom half of the frame.
Villaruz-Mauai put Chaminade back up, leading off the fourth with a solo jack over the right-centerfield wall. But APU sent 10 batters to the plate in the bottom of the inning, scoring six times on four hits. One run came on a bases-loaded hit batter while another was on a balk with a runner at third.
The Cougars plated eight runs in the fifth and sixth innings to help them salvage the series split.
Xavier Stoker (Cedar City, Utah/College of the Canyons//Canyon View HS) took the loss for the 'Swords. Villaruz-Mauai had two of Chaminade's four hits in the finale.
Azusa Pacific used five pitchers with Jake Vargas, their first reliever, throwing 1 2/3 innings to pick up the win. The Cougars had 12 hits with Allan Camarillo getting three knocks and drove in three while Elijah Morgan had six RBI.
The Silverswords will be at Westmont College for their second PacWest series of the season with doubleheaders on Friday and Saturday. Friday's first pitch is scheduled for 9 a.m. Hawai'i time.
