MALIBU, Calif. – The Pepperdine baseball team had an offensive explosion, defeating PCH Cup rival Loyola Marymount 18-4 on Sunday.
The Lions (14-23, 7-11 WCC) took an early lead before the Waves (13-16, 6-6 WCC) had an eight-run fourth inning, capped off by an
Aharon Modlin grand slam.
BIG WAVES
- Junior infielder Wyatt Young (Honolulu, Hawaii/Mid-Pacific Institute) had hits in his first four at bats. All were singles, and he drove in three runs.
- Senior infielder Aharon Modlin (Irvine, Calif./Woodbridge HS) went 3-for-4 with two singles and a grand slam in the fourth inning.
- Senior catcher Joe Caparis (Palos Verdes Estates, Calif./Palos Verdes HS) had two hits including a bases-clearing double which drove in three runs.
- Sophomore utility Ryan Johnson (Tempe, Ariz./Seton Catholic HS) went 2-for-5 with two RBI.
PLAY-BY-PLAY
The Lions got the offense started early, as three straight singles and a double to lead off the game gave them a quick 2-0 lead. A double play with the bases loaded extended LMU's lead to 3-0 through one inning.
The Waves answered in the bottom of the second with two runs. After
Connor Bradshaw (New Rochelle, N.Y./Trinity-Pauling HS) was hit by a pitch and moved to second on a groundout, Johnson singled up the middle to score Bradshaw from second. Then, after Johnson was moved to second on a sacrifice bunt, Young singled Johnson home to get the Waves to within a run.
In the third inning, the Waves scored four runs to take the lead.
Justin Lutes (Las Vegas, Nev./College of Southern Nevada) walked to lead off the inning and got to third on a Bradshaw double. He then scored when Johnson singled down the left field line with the bases loaded after
John Peck (Moorpark, Calif./Moorpark HS)walked. Bradshaw scored on a bases-loaded groundout from
Joe Caparis. Young then singled up the middle, bringing in Peck and Johnson to give the Waves a 6-3 lead through three innings.
The Lions got a run back in the fourth inning thanks to a home run to left field, cutting the Waves' lead to 6-4.
Pepperdine answered back in a big way in the bottom half of the fourth with eight runs. With two outs,
Billy Cook (Monument, Colo./Lewis Palmer HS) drew a walk and was moved to second on a Bradshaw single. They both advanced on a wild pitch before Peck walked. A bases-clearing double from Caparis blew the game open at 9-4. After Young's fourth single of the day,
Reese Alexiades (Manhattan Beach, Calif./Mira Costa HS) walked to load the bases again. Modlin then blasted a ball to deep left field, leaving the yard for a grand slam. After four innings of play, Pepperdine led 14-4.
The Waves added to their lead in the seventh inning, as Johnson had a sacrifice fly to left field, scoring Cook from third, giving Pepperdine a 15-4 lead.
In the eighth inning, three more runs scored for the Waves. Two came from a bases-loaded error from the third baseman, off the bat of
Michael Winaker (Walnut Creeek, Calif./San Ramon HS), scoring Young and
Zach Chonkich (Portland, Ore./Grant HS), who entered the game for Alexiades and walked. Then Cook hit a ball into left field, deep enough to score Modlin who singled earlier and reached third on the error.
UP NEXT
The Waves hit the road for a midweek matchup with USC on Tuesday. First Pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m.