SEASIDE, Calif. – Not a bad start to the season.
With both teams looking to secure a series win after splitting the first two games, a back-and-forth final contest on Saturday went the Cougars way late as they recorded an 8-6 win against Cal State Monterey Bay.
"It was a good team win today. To come out and battle like we did against a physical team like Cal State Monterey Bay the past three days was a good way to start the season," head coach Paul Svagdis. "They are a good team and I'm proud of our guys."
Azusa Pacific got their 50-game schedule off to a solid start against a squad which was one of six teams to qualify for the NCAA Division II West Region championships last season. In the series finale, Azusa Pacific took an early lead but had to overcame a deficit in the game's final stages.
Cam Bennett opened the scoring with an RBI single which scored Mychael Goudreau in the third inning. Bennett scored a moment later after a fielding error by the Otters during a Pablo O'Connor at-bat. A sacrifice fly by Adrian Tovalin scored O'Connor to conclude the frame's scoring.
The Otters scrambled back immediately with two runs in their half of the inning. The home team eventually tied the contest in the fifth inning on a Hayden Duer solo homerun. Cal State Monterey Bay's offense pieced together two runs on three hits in the sixth inning to take the lead. Their damage could have been worse as they loaded the bases but with two outs, Royal Bradley induced a groundout from Duer to end the frame.
Looking to add to their 5-4 advantage, the Otters got a solo homerun from pinch hitter Max Sanderson to pad their lead. Azusa Pacific used the long ball in the favor in the eighth stanza. After Bennett and O'Connor reached base, Tovalin took the first pitch he saw over the centerfield fence to give the Cougars the lead. The Cougars added an insurance run in the ninth when Goudreau singled home Michael Staudinger.
Hayden Jorgenson, who entered the game to start the eighth inning, shut down the Otters in order to get the final six outs. It is the righthander's first collegiate save.
"We had a little bit of a chip on our shoulder after they beat us four times at our place last season," O'Connor said. "It's great to start the season with a series win and we'll look to build on that momentum next week."
Azusa Pacific returns to the diamond on Thursday when they host Cal State San Bernardino at 5 p.m. for their home opener.
