Portland (10-10) had taken the lead in the first game of the series Thursday when Turner Gill led off the second inning with a single and advanced to third on a double by Matt Mardesich. Riley Henricks successfully executed a squeeze bunt, driving in Gill with the first run of the game. The game was stopped in the middle of the third inning Thursday due to rain.
When the game resumed Friday, Owen Jones came on to pitch for Portland and shut the Redhawks down, allowing only three hits and a walk in six innings while striking out four batters. Seattle U did not help its cause, leaving nine runners on base, including six runners in scoring position.
The Pilots added some insurance in the seventh inning, beginning with a two-out fielding error by the Redhawks that kept the inning alive. With the bases loaded, Kris Kauppila sent a single through the right side to drive in two runs, followed by a two-run single by Kevin Armijo that produced the final score of the contest.
Seafth Howe (Seattle, Wash.) pitched another solid game, allowing just three hits and two runs in 6 1/3 innings of work spread out over two days. Trent Oleszczuk (Beaverton, Ore.) earned two of Seattle U's four hits, while six different Pilots picked up one hit apiece.
Oleszczuk led off the next game with a walk, advanced to second on a ground out, reached third on a single by Doug Kincaid (Portland, Ore), and scored on an infield single by Matt Comer (Bozeman, Mont.). The Redhawks threatened to score more runs by loading the bases, but a ground out ended the inning with no further scoring.
In the second inning, Portland exploded for nine runs on eight hits, chasing Seattle U starter Arlo Evasick (Port Ludlow, Wash.) from the game. Seattle U again loaded the bases in the fourth inning, with a walk to Nick Latta (Tacoma, Wash.) forcing in Comer, but a Portland pitching change stopped the Redhawk rally, and the Pilots scored two runs in the bottom of the fifth inning to extend their lead back to eight runs.
Comer earned two of the three Redhawk hits in the contest, as Seattle U did not earn any hits off Pilot relievers Brent Miller and Chris Dennis, who combined for six innings and four strikeouts without a walk. Gill led Portland with a 3-for-4 effort, while four other Pilot hitters collected two hits apiece in the game.
Seattle University (9-9) begins a homestand Monday, March 28, against the University of Nevada at Bannerwood Park in Bellevue, with the first pitch scheduled for 12:30 p.m. Live stats and live audio will be available on GoSeattleU.com.