Box Score 1 | Box Score 2
Oakland, CA -- After a long period away from home, the Academy of Art University baseball team returned to Laney College to host Dixie State University in the opening double-header of a four-game series, but although there were hot spots in the lineup, the production up and down the roster wasn't enough to overcome two early leads. The Knights had their share of extra-base hits, but big first innings in both games spelled victory for the Red Storm, as Academy of Art fell 6-4 and 7-1. 

Nate Gercken took the hill in the opener, and the Urban Knights' starter, who had put together a strong stretch to start the season, came out flat in the first inning. He walked the first two batters, and after a pair of singles and a groundout, the Red Storm had a 3-0 lead. ART U struck back right away with a two-out rally in their half, as Lyle "Kalani" Brackenridge hit a single. Chucky Cavestany followed with a popup that fell in no-man's land between three Dixie State players, and Brackenridge score all the way from first base to put the Knights on the board.

Dixie would get two more runs in the third inning on back-to-back doubles from Trey Kamachi and Kevin Kline, who would later score on a single from Austin Bartleson to make it 5-1. But the Knights again clawed their way back into it. They got a single run in the fourth, when Brackenridge hit a double and Daniel Skinner had an RBI single, and added another in the seventh when Cavestany walked, stole second, and took third when the throw went into center field. Dante Redhead scored him on a ground-out up the middle, and it was a 5-3 game.

Dylan Rodrigues had taken over for Gercken in the sixth, and he got through two innings without a scratch, but gave up a leadoff baserunner in the eighth on an error by Daniel Gutierrez in left. After a sacrifice bunt, Dalton Gust hit a blooper over the drawn in infield to give Dixie a 6-3 lead.

ART U would rally in their last at-bat, as Brackenridge walked, stole second, and then scored on a booming triple by Skinner that bounced up against the wall in right-center, but that was the closest they would get, as Redhead grounded out to end the first game.


Freshman Josh Lopez was on the mound for the second game, and he also hit a rough patch in the first frame before settling down. After a leadoff single, he got Bartleson to fly out, but Kamachi hit a long homer to left field to put Dixie up 2-0. Kevin Kline followed with a single, and after a missed popup by ART U shortstop Jordan Thomas and a single by Mike Umscheid, the Red Storm were up 4-0 before the Knights came up to bat.

They would strike back in the second inning though, as Maclane Brady, who has played well at first base against left-handed pitching, matched Kamachi with a no-doubter home run of his own to deep left that made it a 4-1 game. That proved to be the only run for the Knights, however, as Dixie State capitalized on another popup in the cloudless sky that fell for two more runs in the third.

But the Knights were not without opportunities. After having his ten-game hitting streak snapped in the opening game, center fielder Joseph Marchini had a one-out single in the third, but was erased trying to steal second. Brackenridge followed with a leadoff single in the fourth, but he, too, was caught stealing. Meanwhile, Lopez would continue to throw well after the first, staying in until there were two outs in the sixth before giving way to Yoshi Uemura and the Knights bullpen.

Dixie State added one more in the seventh on a sacrifice fly that would lead to the final run of the game, and Bubba Blau came in an struck out the side in the bottom of the ninth to put the Knights in the loss column. The two teams will face off again tomorrow night at 7:00 PM and finish up the series with a 1:00 PM game on Wednesday, March 12.