April 7, 2009
SANTA CLARA, Calif. - The Santa Clara baseball team fell 8-4 in a close and hard-fought game against No. 23 Hawaii in non-conference action Tuesday evening at Stephen Schott Stadium. With the loss, the Broncos (10-17) have dropped their last 10 straight games. The Rainbows improved to 20-10 on the season.
The win went to starter Alex Capaul (1-1). He tossed six innings and gave up three runs on seven hits. He also struck out five Broncos. The loss went to starter Cory Hall (0-3).
On the mound, redshirt freshman Jason Westerberg came in for 4.1 innings of relief and did a tremendous job holding off the Rainbows. He gave up just one run and struck out a season-high six batters.
Offensively, Jon Karcich and Geoff Klein were 2-for-4 with an RBI each. Klein also had a run. Defensively, centerfielder Matt Long and late game substitution Lucas Herbst made excellent plays to keep the Broncos alive and in the game.
Hawaii took an early lead and never relinquished it. The Rainbows tallied four runs in the first inning as Greg Garcia and Ryan Morford scored on a Kevin Macdonald double. Macdonald was then brought home on a Kolten Wong base hit and the final run was scored by Wong on a Jeff Van Doornum single.
Santa Clara was able to get on the board with a single run in the first inning. First baseman Curtis Wagner scored on a Klein double down the left field line. Wagner got on base with a double to right centerfield. Brady Fuerst tried to cut the score in half by driving home Klein with a shot to centerfield, but it fell a bit to short and into the glove of Wong.
Each team added a run in the third inning. The Rainbows increased their lead to 5-2 with a sacrifice fly from Sean Montplaisir, which plated Wong. The Broncos scored Long on a Karcich double down the left field line. Long walked to get on base.
SCU then made it a two-run game in the fifth inning as Juan Parra scored on a Long triple. It was the senior's 12 career triple, which now ties him for fourth on the Santa Clara All-Time list. The Broncos trailed 5-3.
However, Hawaii posted three runs in the seventh inning to claim an 8-3 advantage. Morford scored on a Macdonald single, while Landon Hernandez homered to left field. He brought Macdonald home along with him.
Yet, the Broncos had the final say in the ninth inning as they were able to score one more run. After Karcich struck out, Klein doubled down the left field line and then reached third on a fielding error by left fielder Montplaisir. Klein easily scored on a Fuerst groundout to first base. With two outs on the board, Andrew Biancardi walked to give the Broncos another opportunity, but David Abraham's shot to left field was a little too short and was caught for the third and final out.
Broncos return to West Coast Conference action with a single game on Thursday, Apr. 9 against Portland. First pitch is scheduled for 3 p.m. The series will conclude with a doubleheader on Saturday, Apr. 11 beginning at 9 a.m.
