[Baseball] Baseball Falcons sweep Eagles to claim KCAC series

KANSAS CITY – After dropping the series opener yesterday (Mar. 3) in the most heartbreaking fashion, the Friends University Falcons shook it off and swept the Avila University Eagles today by scores of 4-2 and 10-3 to win the weekend three-game set in Kansas City, Mo.

Caleb Coats (SO/Katy, Texas) assured the Falcons would start off on the right note with a triple to lead off the game.

Buster Hardman (JR/American Fork, Utah) promptly chased Coats home with an RBI groundout before Niquan Benjamin (SO/US Virgin Islands) doubled and scored the Falcons' second run on a single by Devon Lujan (SO/Olathe, Kan.).

The Eagles answered with a run in the bottom of the first and the score stayed that way until Pablo Oden (SR/Hollywood, Fla.) made it a two-run lead again with a double that scored Hardman in the fifth.

Up 3-2 in the seventh, Lujan emphatically closed out the scoring with a solo homer in the eighth.

That was enough offense to support a solid pitching effort from the Falcons, starting with six innings from Daniel Jaime (SO/Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.). Jaime gave up two runs and struck out five with no walks. Matt Bomersback (SO/Montreal, Quebec, Canada), Keagan Alejo (SO/Waco, Texas) and Vincent Vigil (FR/Tampa, Fla. ) then each pitched a scoreless inning to close out the win, with Vigil earning his third save of the season.

Lujan and Oliver Dunn (SO/Endeavour Hills, Australia) each had two hits to pace the Falcons' offensive attack in the opening game victory.

Dunn was the star of the nightcap for the Falcons, driving in six runs and going 3-of-3 at the dish.

With the Falcon lead hovering at 4-2, Dunn singled home Benjamin and Oden to double the lead up to four runs and then unleashed a three-run homer in the fifth to break the game wide open for a 10-2 lead.

Zeke Henson (SO/Raymore, Mo. ) drove in two runs and scored three times in the Falcon second game victory.

The Falcons (8-9, 2-2 KCAC) also got another solid start on the mound, with Matthew Benton (SO/Hobart, Ind.) lasting six innings and giving up two earned runs along with five strikeouts and four walks.

Matt Postier (SO/Wichita, Kan.) followed Benton and closed out the game with a pair of strikeouts in a scoreless seventh frame.

Leadoff hitter Landon Vahle went 2-of-3 and scored a run in the second game for Avila (11-10, 2-2 KCAC).

The Falcons will next return home to host Southwestern College Tuesday afternoon (Mar. 7) starting at 3 pm at West Side Athletic Field.