ALAMEDA, Calif. – It was a complete day on the diamond for Academy of Art baseball, totaling 25 runs on 24 hits while the pitching kept opponent Holy Names from scoring more than one run in any inning. In all, it led to ART U to a Pacific West Conference doubleheader sweep against Holy Names by scores of 17-4 in game one and 8-1 (7 innings) in game two, the second straight series win to start the 2020-21 campaign for ART U.

Carrying a three run lead into the latter stages of the game, a 10-run eighth inning helped the Urban Knights (6-2, 6-2 PacWest) to tie the second-most runs scored in a single game in ART U history in the dominating win. It was the most runs scored in a single game since they also plated 17 against Central Washington on Feb. 9, 2020. The hot bats continued to start the shortened second game, as ART U jumped on the Hawks (3-3, 1-3 PacWest) with three runs in the first inning, which was two more than they would need by the game's end. Totaling four hits on the day were junior outfielder Ty Conrad and junior first baseman Vincent Lontz, with Conrad being the primary force at the plate by going 4-for-8 with five RBI, four runs scored and a home run. Lontz ended his day 4-for-9 with a run and RBI, while graduate student second baseman Justin Summers was 3-for-4 with six runs scored, five RBI, two triples and three walks. After the pair of three-baggers, Summers has moved into a tie for fifth all time in ART U history in career triples along with Jackson Murphy (2017-18). ART U starting pitchers earned the win in both games, and the bullpen picked up their first save of the year.

GAME ONE – ART U 17, HNU 4
Each team plated a run in the first, as Holy Names started the scoring with an RBI groundout after an error and a walk put the first two batters of the game on base. The ART U response started with a leadoff double from graduate student outfielder Andrew Shebloski, and would conclude with a perfectly executed a double steal. Conrad, who reached on a walk, broke for second base and beat the throw down from HNU catcher Jonathan Waite, allowing Shebloski to race home and tie the game. Waite would recapture the lead for the Hawks in the following frame, driving in a run on a sacrifice fly to make it a 2-1 ballgame. 

The bats started heating up for ART U in the third and fourth innings, scoring two runs in each inning to jump back out in front. Two quick outs were recorded to begin the third, a double and a walk would put two runners in scoring position, with the pressure leading to an HNU error and both runs scoring. Then it was clutch hitting from Conrad in the fourth inning, as he collected his first two RBI of the day after he lined a two-strike, two-out base hit into right-center field. Later in the sixth, redshirt junior outfielder Dominic Ruggiero would join the party by driving in on a run on an RBI single into right, driving home sophomore outfielder Hayato Niki. 

HNU would score once in each the seventh and eighth while ART U plated one in their half of the seventh, but it all set the stage for the explosion in the bottom of the eighth. It was the most productive inning of the year for the Urban Knights, scoring 10 runs on a total of six hits and four walks, and was also aided by an error. Seven of the 10 runs came on just two swings in the inning, with the first four coming home on the first triple of the day by Summers. He lined a 2-1 pitch into left-center field that rolled all the way to the wall, unloading the bases that had been filled with a single and two walks, and then scoring a run himself after an errant relay throw into the infield from Holy Names. The inning would be capped off by a towering three-run big fly by Conrad, sending a 2-1 pitch into deep left field for ART U's final runs of the game. 

Earning his first win of the season was junior right hander Noah Daubin, allowing three runs, none of them earned, on four hits with three strikeouts. Fellow junior and righty Collin Carriger notched a six-out save, the first of the year for the Urban Knights. Carriger didn't allow a hit in the appearance, walking one while striking out four of his seven batters faced. The top of the lineup had another productive game, as the first four hitters combined for eight hits. In total, five Urban Knights posted a two-hit game, with Shebloski going 2-for-4 with four runs scored, an RBI and two walks, while Ruggiero also went 2-for-4 with two runs scored and three RBI. And while Niki also registered a three-hit game with two runs scored, no game was bigger than that of Conrad, posting a final stat line of 2-for-4 with five RBI, two runs scored, a homer and two walks. The five RBI is tied for the most in a single game in ART U history, with the first to do so being current ART U assistant coach Stefen Henderson on Apr. 2, 2012, while the last to do it was Zak May against Azusa Pacific in April 2019. 

GAME TWO – ART U 8, HNU 1 (7 INNINGS)
It was another fast start to the game, as the Urban Knights kept up their momentum between games just as they had done in the doubleheader to begin the series. A walk and a single would lead to another successfully executed delayed double-steal, with Ruggiero swiping home for the games first run. ART U would do it for a second time in the inning just two batters later after Summers would reach via a hit by pitch, this time with Conrad crossing home plate. The third and final run in the inning would eventually score after a throwing error by the Holy Names shortstop.

Four more insurance runs would be added in the third and fourth innings combined, with one scoring in the third on a fielder's choice with the bases loaded by sophomore third baseman Adam Inouye. The other three runs would come home in the following frame thanks to four consecutive hits, highlighted by Summers' second triple of the day into left-center field that drove home Conrad and Daubin. The very next batter, Lontz would make sure Summers crossed the plate on a single by a ball that fell into no-man's-land just behind second base. 

HNU would stop the shutout by ART U starting right-hander Cannon Secrist in the top of the fifth with a solo homer by Tyler Georgeson, but that would be the only time the Hawks would reach the scoreboard. It was the only run and one of just three hits allowed in the 7.0 innings pitched by Secrist, going along with six strikeouts and two walks for his first win of the year in a complete game effort. One final time in the sixth inning the Urban Knights would execute a base running play to perfection, as Daubin would get in a rundown between first and second and allow Ruggiero time to scored, with both men having reached base via a single. 

In all, four different Urban Knights registered a multi-hit game, led by Summers' 2-for-2 effort with three RBI, two runs scored and a triple, while Conrad was 2-for-4 with two runs scored. While he only collected one hit, Ruggiero came around to score twice and score his team-leading 11th run of the season.

ART U will return to the diamond when they take on Fresno Pacific in a four-game set beginning at 2 p.m. on March 25.