OAKLAND, Calif. – The Urban Knights made it three wins in-a-row on Friday night when they held on for a 7-6 victory over Holy Names in the series' second contest. ART U's offense once again told the tale, as a 4-run fifth propelled them into a lead which they refused to surrender.
 
The Hawks held the first advantage of the game however, scoring two runs in the top of the first. The first came on a clean, base hit which allowed a run to score while the second crossed the plate on a fielding error.
 
ART U quickly responded with a 3-run bottom of the frame which began with junior infielder Elijah Smith hitting a triple to right-center on the first pitch of the inning. Then, with an 0-2 count, senior infielder Taylor Martin delivered an RBI-single through the right side to give the Urban Knights their first run of the game. The Knights scored twice more in the inning with RBI coming from senior outfielder Evan Ray and junior infielder Angel Mora.
 
Now, with a 3-2 lead, junior right-hander Ben Kaser (4-3) went back to work on the mound and needed just 10 pitches to get through the second inning. However, the Hawks managed to tie the score at three runs apiece in the third: an unearned run scored following a throwing error that allowed the runner to score all the way from first.
 
ART U was unable to respond in the bottom of the frame, so the score remained knotted until the bottom of the fifth when the Urban Knights put the game away for good. Sending a total of eight batters to the plate in the inning, it all started off with a single from Smith to left field on a 3-1 count. Martin then reached on a throwing error by the pitcher and then a sacrifice bunt from senior outfielder Jackson Murphy set up runners at second and third with just one out. Next up was Ray, but he was intentionally walked, loading the bases and setting up a force at any position. However, Mora had other ideas in mind as he produced a single that went past the first baseman down the right field line, driving in both Ray and Martin. Then, a wild pitch permitted Reichel to cross the plate for the Knights' fourth and final run of the frame.
 
ART U held a 7-3 advantage heading to the top of the sixth and they nearly escaped the frame unscathed, getting two crucial out while runners sat at first and second and eventually, second and third. At that point, senior righty Chris Rost (2-0) entered the fray, but on his third pitch, HNU's Colton Combs hit a comebacker off of Rost's leg which ricocheted towards the third-base line, allowing a runner to score. Then, the Hawks plated one more when a slider with too sharp of a bite bounced away from Reichel behind the plate, permitting another run to come home.
 
Now in shutdown mode, Rost did not allow a run in either the seventh or eighth, but entering the ninth with a 7-5 lead, Holy Names nearly pulled off a comeback attempt: the Hawks put the tying run in scoring position with one out and scored a run on an RBI groundout which moved the potential tying run to third. Then, Rost shut down the final batter, striking him out on five pitches to preserve the win and register his career-first save.
 
Overall, the Urban Knights amassed eight hits while Mora collected three of them, driving in a team-high, three runs. The Torrance, Calif. native now leads the team with a .340 batting average and has the third-most RBI on the season (13). Smith produced two hits in five at-bats and Martin went 1-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored. Furthermore, Smith's three-bagger in the first inning was his fourth of the season (a team-high) and it is the second-most by any player in the PacWest. Lastly, it ties the program record for the most triples in a single season, a record which was set by Joseph Marchini in 2016.
 
With the win, the Urban Knights improve to above .500 with a 16-15 overall record and they are now even with an 11-11 PacWest mark. ART U is curretly in sixth-place and their 3-game winning streak is tied with Dixie State for the longest active streak in the conference. Now, with a commanding, 2-0 series lead, things will shift over to College of Alameda where Holy Names will host a doubleheader on Saturday to close out the four-game set. First pitch is scheduled for Noon and live stats can be found here.