May 12—Wearing a Lewis-Clark State uniform comes with pressure.
Under the bright lights of NAIA Baseball’s first round presented by Avista, the Braves felt it.
“Pressure,” LC State coach Jeremiah Robbins said, “is a great part of being in this program … having expectations.”
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But when the Keizer Seahawks cut LCSC’s lead to one in the fourth inning, the Warriors were aiming not to lose.
“You can never not lose,” Robbins said. “I basically told them, ‘Stop looking at the scoreboard. We’ll check in after nine.’ This team was really excited and they were their own worst enemy. I think that calmed them down a little bit. We came out and responded with a run.”
The Braves got another run in the bottom of the seventh inning after Jackson Reed took over, and behind a strong start from senior starter Evan Canfield and four innings from reliever Jordan Lenartson to seal the inning, the Braves defeated Keizer 7-3 on Monday in front of 580 fans at Harris Field in Lewiston.
Top seed and No. 4 nationally ranked LC State will face No. 21 Hope International, the third seed, today at 6 p.m.
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The Royals defeated No. 13 Texas A&M Victoria 6-0 in Monday’s early game.
Keizer will face elimination against Texas A&M Victoria at 2:30 p.m.
clear the table
Almost every time Keizer scores, the Warriors respond with a point (or three) of their own.
Robbins said that’s something the Braves are discussing this week after leaving some runners on base paths and playing several close, low-scoring conference championship games.
“When you have a chance to score, you’ve got to find a way to get one, or maybe two, out of it,” Robbins said. “I tip my hat to our guys. They did it today.”
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Reed had a productive day for the Braves, hitting a three-run single in the second inning and doubling down the right field line in the fourth, but floundered after three straight outs.
However, he hit a popup in the bottom of the fifth inning, stranding junior left fielder Brandon Nguyen at third and sophomore third baseman Jackson Jaha at second.
With two teams on and two outs in the bottom of the seventh inning, Reed didn’t want to miss another opportunity.
“My mentality, more than anything, was just being in a super-attack mode and finding something in front of the plate again, just because I found myself catching the ball a little deep and that’s what caused the previous at-bat to pop out,” Reed said. “So I was just trying to be the aggressor again on the at-bat. It worked out perfectly. He was behind on that count and I just stayed calm and let my hands work. Yeah, the results speak for themselves.”
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Reed’s pass to center field scored second baseman Izzy Madariaga, who extended the inning with a two-out, four-pitch walk.
Then, Bryce Johnson ran to third and slid home, and the Seahawks chose not to challenge Johnson’s advance with a home run. The Warriors lead 7-3.
Nguyen took the second pitch from Seahawks starter Austin Taylor and hit it to right-center field for the first home run. Keizer tied the game at 1-1 in the first half of the second quarter before the Braves got going, using a series of singles and productive ground balls to drive the run and score.
canfield mentality
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Canfield has had an up-and-down season, but has allowed no more than three runs in each of his past eight starts.
It’s like that again today. Although the senior starter from Bothell, Wash., wasn’t, as he put it, at his best, Canfield remained solid, limiting Keizer’s offensive output to three runs in his five innings at the helm.
Canfield struck out three, walked one and allowed seven hits.
“He actually puts too much pressure on himself at times, but he’s been in this situation before and he showed his experience today,” Robbins said. “He’s been our Day 1 staff all year long. There’s a reason for that, just his mentality, so he’s done a really good job for us.”
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Canfield said it helps him to maintain a competitive mentality of being better than the hitters in front of him, especially in difficult situations.
“As a starter, you start high and you’re going to get a lot of good W’s out there and then we’re going to get hit and then you’ve got to learn to lock in,” Canfield. “The last seven or eight starts, (I’m) just remembering who I am and remembering that I have a good defense behind me and hitters that are going to pick me up when needed.”
One of the key defenders was shortstop Peyton Smith, who made a couple of dazzling plays down the field, backhand grounders and then throwing them to Ryan Prescott.
Injury notes
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Senior Noah Weintraub returns to midfield after missing the conference championship game.
Catcher Cade Westerlund continues to bide his time behind the plate while senior catcher Bulla Ephan suffers a hand injury. Robbins said Iffin will not play in the first round.
hello old friend
The Warriors are very familiar with Hope International. The Royals have ventured to Lewiston for a first-round game each of the past two years, returning to the World Series a week later both times — displacing LC State.
Two years ago, Hope International won it all, and last year they lost twice to eventual national champion LSU Shreveport.
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A win over HIU would not only advance LC to Wednesday’s finals, but also represent a vote of confidence in the Warriors’ chances of extending the postseason.
Reid said he likes the way the Warriors prepare — focusing on a comprehensive physical and mental approach, then picking apart opposing starters and getting into the weeds.
“We’re ready to step in and, most importantly, we’re going to outscore them,” Reed said. “Ready to attack the baseball and leave it all on the field.”
Kaiser 010 110 000—3 8 2
LCSC 130 010 20X—7 11 0
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Taylor, Hernandez (8) and Nadal; Canfield, Lennartson (6) and Westerlund.
W——Canfield; L——Taylor.
Keizer hits — Brooks 2 (2B), Shaver 2, Barratt, Garcia, Corrado, Dozy.
Lewis-Clark State hits — Reed 3 (2B), Nguyen 2 (HR), Westerlund 2, Jaha, Madariaga, Johnson, Smith.
Taylor can be reached at 208-848-2260, staylor@lmtribune.com, or on Instagram @Sam_C_Taylor.