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Box Score 2 SHAWNEE, Okla. --- St. Gregory's University completed a three-game sweep of Wayland Baptist on Saturday afternoon. The Cavaliers held on to beat the Pioneers 10-6 in the conclusion of Friday's second game and then rallied with a four-run eighth to take a 7-4 decision in the finale.
WBU trailed 10-1 in the nightcap of Friday's doubleheader, which was called in the top of the sixth due to tornado warnings in the Shawnee area. On Saturday, Ben Christian launched a two-run homer in the sixth and Josh Chinni hit a three-run bomb in the seventh to close the final margin to 10-6.
The Pioneers outhit their hosts 12-6 in the third game of the series, but left 14 men on base. Bernie Rosario, Johnny Hendrixson, Brandon Barcalow and Christian each had two hits in the nine-inning game.
St. Greg's got on the scoreboard first with an unearned run in the bottom of the first. Wayland responded with a run of its own in the top of the second. After Barcalow doubled deep down the left field line, Christian brought him home on a single through the right side of the infield.
The Pioneers grabbed the lead with a two-run fourth. Christian started the inning off with an infield single, and then advanced to second on Colton Palmer's base hit through the hole at short. Oscar Rivera's hit to left brought home Christian, and Palmer made it a 3-1 game when he came across on Clinton Roberts' groundout.
A two-run SGU fifth tied it at three, but WBU went back on top in the sixth on a Rosario double and a Cavalier error.
Pioneer starting pitcher Kevin Burbank left the game in the seventh with two on and one out. The senior southpaw had his most productive outing of the season, limiting St. Greg's to just three hits in 6-1/3 innings. All three runs Burbank allowed were unearned, but he did walk seven batters.
Freshman Caden Whitley came in to replace Burbank and induced an inning-ending double play. However, in the eighth, the Cavaliers forced the loss on Whitley after crossing the plate four times on two walks and back-to-back doubles.
With the three-game series loss, the Pioneers fall to 13-33 on the season and 4-18 in conference play. The Cavaliers, meanwhile, climb to 20-19 and 14-8.
WBU returns home for four SAC games, the first of which is Tuesday evening at 5 p.m. against #14 Lubbock Christian. The Chaps (26-15, 14-8) are coming off a 2-1 series loss to #7 Oklahoma Baptist.
On Thursday and Friday, the Pioneers play host to Southern Nazarene University. WBU will honor its four seniors – Calvin Bass, Kevin Burbank, Jobe Sanchez, and Oscar Rivera – prior to Friday's game, which is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m.
