Box Score

Oakland, CA - Bad things usually come in threes, and for the Urban Knights baseball team, it was three innings where visiting Northwest Nazarene put up three runs that finally brought down Academy of Art as the Crusaders won 10-4. The Knights were right in the thick of it for most of the game, but back-to-back big innings in the seventh and eighth put the game out of reach.

Starter Zach Mexicano (0-2) had his best outing of the year, finding his control and only walking three while striking out five Crusaders, but still ended up taking the loss. Second-baseman Zach Babitt continued his strong start to the season, going 3-for-5 with a run and an RBI.

"Zach threw the ball really well tonight," said head coach Brian Guinn. "He was in control. He had control of all of his pitches, and he was working them all in out there."

The Knights scored first, which seems to be a positive trend for them in the early going this season. Zach Babitt, who moved up to the leadoff position for ART U, led off with a bunt single, advancing to second on a throwing error by the pitcher. His younger brother, Myles, then sacrificed him to third base, and another sacrifice by Niko Leite brought Babitt in to put the Knights up 1-0 after one.

Mexicano cruised through the second inning, striking out Logan Parker and Jamie Mitchell around a groundout and a walk. But the senior ran into trouble in the third. After he got Tate Glasgow to fly out to start the inning, he walked Kaleb DeHaas. Leadoff hitter Sean McDonald then lofted a ball to right, but right-fielder Johnathan Robbins lost the ball in the night sky, and it dropped for a double.

Both runners advanced on a wild pitch, allowing DeHaas to score and McDonald to get to third. Then another ball to right eluded Robbins, as he slipped on the turf in short right field. Robbins still got a glove on the ball, but McDonald scored and shortstop Ben Clare was on first. Clare stole second, and then moved to third when Derek Bettinson grounded out to first. Mexicano then uncorked another wild pitch, his third of the game, and the Crusaders were up 3-1.

Mexicano notched two more strikeouts in the fourth, and the Urban Knights began to do what they've been doing all year, clawing their way back into the game. Jared DePatto took three straight balls off the inside before the fourth one hit him in the hip. Robbins had a bunt single, getting DePatto over to third on an error by the third-baseman. Both runners advanced on a wild pitch with James Singzon up, cutting the lead to 3-2, but then Robbins was picked off at second. Wade Broadstreet then flied out to end the threat.

"Our guys don't give up," said Coach Guinn. "They don't stop fighting, and if we get a chance to come back, we're going to take advantage. We hit the ball hard a few times with guys on base that unfortunately just went right to the defenders. That won't always happen. Those hits are going to fall."

Both teams went quietly in the fifth, but the Crusaders added a run in the top of the sixth inning when Charlie Gorzo tripled and scored on a wild pitch. Mitchell then walked, but Mexicano got Glasgow to fly out again to keep it 4-2.

The Knights came back in the bottom of the inning for one more. Myles Babitt had an infield single on a chopper behind the third-base bag. Leite sacrificed him to second, and then DePatto was hit for the second time by Crusaders starter Charles Pollock (2-0). Robbins then walked to load the bases with one out, and all three runners advanced on a wild pitch. Singzon struck out, and then Broadstreet walked to load the bases again for Stephen Henderson, but Northwest Nazarene brought in Aaron Vaughn and he got Henderson to ground into a fielder's choice to end the inning with NNU still holding the 4-3 advantage.

Mexicano departed after six strong innings, giving way to the bullpen. Yoshi Uemura came in for the seventh and hit DeHaas, who then advanced to second on a wild pitch. The freshman southpaw got McDonald to fly out to right, but Clare walked, with DeHaas advancing to third as the ball skittered to the backstop. Spencer Roland then came in for the Knights with two on and one out. The crafty lefty got Bettinson to fly out to center, but Logan Parker homered on a towering fly ball to right that just carried right over the fence to put Northwest Nazarene up 7-3.

The Crusaders added three more in the top of the eighth off of Brandon Kistler, as the visitors batted around against the Knights bullpen. NNU got four straight singles to go up 8-3, but Kistler struck out Sam Cook, who pinch-hit for the shortstop Clare. One batter later, the Knights had a complicated and dangerous moment when Parker reached on a fielders choice, but Bettinson was out after he ran over Zach Babitt in between first and second. Because of the ruling, the runners had to return to their spots, so no runs scored on the play, although Parker replaced Bettinson on the basepaths. Gorzo then walked to force in a run, but Kistler got Greg Hata looking to end the inning.

The Urban Knights kept the hits coming, however, as Henderson doubled off of Barrett Nielson in the bottom of the ninth. He scored on a hard single by Zach Babitt, and then Myles Babitt reached on a ball through the first-baseman, with Zach going to third. But Nielson was able to retire Leite and DePatto to finish the game off.

The Knights and Crusaders will square off again tomorrow night at 7:00 PM at Laney College in Oakland before wrapping up the series on Saturday at noon.