WAIPAHU, Hawaii – It was an outpouring of runs in a Wednesday doubleheader between both Academy of Art baseball and Hawaii Pacific, with the two teams waging a seesaw affair that would eventually go the way of HPU in game one by a 6-3 final before the Sharks rolled to a 25-7 win in game two. 

Things came down to the wire in the series opener, with the teams trading runs until the Sharks (15-16, 9-11 PacWest) put up a four-run bottom of the eighth to give them the cushion they would need to hold on for the three-run victory. Offense followed in game two, with Hawaii Pacific scoring seven times in each of the first two innings en route to the dominant victory. Of the 14 hits on the day for the Urban Knights (9-24, 3-15 PacWest), three would belong to redshirt sophomore Liam Rizzo that would all come in game two while junior outfielder Charles Morgan tallied hits in both games and was a combined 2-for-7 with a run scored and a triple. 

GAME ONE – HPU 6, ART U 3
A home run of the inside-the-park variety got the game started in the home half of the first for the Sharks, as leadoff batter Nicholas Jio hit a ball to center field that would ultimately see him work his way all the way around the basepaths. 

Consecutive hits would even the score for the Knights in the top of the third inning, as a one-out triple from Morgan put a runner 90 feet away from home plate before an RBI single into right field from senior pitcher/utility Ryan Skillman. It was just the first triple of the season for Morgan, while Skillman delivered his first career RBI as an Urban Knight. 

That score would remain all the way until the home half of the sixth when the Sharks manufactured a run to grab the lead, receiving a single from Cole Kashimoto in the inning before coming around to score after a wild pitch and a pair of stolen bases, one of which was a steal of home. 

One swing of the bat from freshman third baseman Emil Jellinek would change the dynamic of the game in the top half of the seventh, as his third homer of the season was a blast into left center field that put the Knights back in front by one, 3-2. 

Unfortunately that lead would not hold through the end of the ballgame, with the Sharks putting up a four-spot in the bottom of the eighth to put the Knights on the ropes heading into the ninth, but ART U would be retired in order in the top of the ninth as HPU held on for the 6-3 win. 

Posting the only multi-hit game was junior middle infielder Adam Inouye, as he was 2-for-3 while four other Knights all tallied one hit, including the 1-for-2 effort with a run scored, two RBI and a homer for Jellinek. Meanwhile, Morgan and graduate student catcher Ryan Gamboa were each 1-for-3 with a run scored. 

Credited with the win was Edward Lee, who earned the decision after allowing just one earned run on two hits over 1.2 innings pitched, while ART U freshman lefty Brian Kraft was tagged with the loss by allowing four earned runs on eight hits over 7.1 innings pitched. 

GAME TWO – HPU 25, ART U 7
Back-to-back hits with two outs in the top of the first inning led to the game's first run, as a single from senior outfielder Ty Conrad set the stage before a double from Rizzo brought him around to score. 

The early run would not stop Hawaii Pacific from scoring the game's next 18 runs unanswered, putting a large distance between the two sides before the Knights could form a response. Academy of Art was able to put up a pair of runs in the top of the fourth on a fielding error and a wild pitch before adding four more runs in the away half of the eighth, highlighted by an RBI single from Turney and a two-RBI single from Rizzo, but seven Hawaii Pacific runs in the seventh and eighth innings would make sure there was no comeback from ART U. 

Posting the most successful game at the dish in game two for ART U was Rizzo with his 3-for-5 effort to go with three RBI and a double, with four other Urban Knights tallying one hit including a 1-for-5 game with a double for junior catcher Robbie Brue. Additionally, Conrad was 1-for-3 with a run scored while Turney was 1-for-4 with a run and an RBI. 

Grabbing the win for HPU was Erik Peterson after he tossed a scoreless 2.0 innings pitched out of the bullpen with three strikeouts, while taking the loss for ART U was sophomore Dallen Turner who's record falls to 1-3. 

This four-game series between the Knights and the Sharks will conclude tomorrow with another doubleheader beginning at 2 p.m. HT.