Box Score
Pictures

Jesse Darrah in-game Interview

Trent Soares post-game interview

Aaron Lynn post-game interview

Though the Fresno Grizzlies would take the game 9-1 in Tuesday night's exhibition, Fresno Pacific players and fans got quite the experience at Chukchansi Park and the Sunbirds had their share of highlights against the AAA club.

Playing in front of a crowd of 5,913, Jesse Darrah struck out three batters and got a lot of swings and misses from the Grizzly hitters. Trent Soares went 3-for-3 and Scott Laird belted a double off the wall which led to the team's only run of the night, a sacrifice fly by Wes Dorrell scoring Soares.

Michael Rivera and Aaron Lynn each struck out two batters in relief, while Kyle Lovero and Michael Jimenez looked strong as well.

Grizzlies' outfielder Terry Evans would steal the show though, hitting two three-run homers to lead his team to victory. The Grizzly pitching staff also posed quite a challenge for the Sunbirds, led by starter Doug Mathis' seven strikeouts over five innings.

Soares began the game with a single for FPU, but a double play and a fly out got Mathis through the first unscathed.

Darrah looked sharp for the Sunbirds, but caught a couple tough breaks in the first inning. He got an 0-2 count on Grizzlies' leadoff hitter Darren Ford before giving up a single. Ford took off for second on the next pitch and Michael Vaughn slipped and couldn't make a throw. The next batter, Emmanuel Burris, hit a blooper that fell off of the shortstop's glove and just like that the Grizzlies had runners on second and third with no outs.

Darrah struck out former first-round pick Connor Gillaspie swinging and then induced a groundout which scored the game's first run. Though he'd pitched well enough to get out of the inning, the bad breaks got up to the Sunbirds as Darrah walked the next batter then surrendered a 3-run blast to Evans.

He would reestablish himself in the second inning, striking out Chris Stewart and Ford, who each went down swinging. Vaughn showcased his arm, gunning down would-be base-stealer Brock Bond during the inning as well.

Darrah worked a 1-2-3 third inning, but Mathis was in the zone for the Grizzlies' as well and had a 4-0 lead to work with.

Soares would give the Sunbirds a potential spark in the top of the 4th, doubling down the right-field line for his (and the team's) second hit of the night. He would end up being stranded on third though.

Michael Rivera took the mound in the 4th inning for the Sunbirds and though he surrendered a couple runs on a 2-RBI single by Ford, he was impressive in his inning of work sending Stewart down on strikes for the second time and striking out the former Giant Burriss to get out of the jam.

Karlan Andrews made one of the plays of the day in the same inning, after Ryan Rohlinger crushed a ball to left field. Andrews judged it and played the wall perfectly, a difficult thing to do in an unfamiliar stadium, making the grab at the wall.

The 5th inning saw the Sunbirds' threaten again, as Rivera ripped a single to left field (one of the hardest-hit balls of the night). Alec Mehrten followed with a single up the middle that bounced off second base. Unfortunately a strikeout and a fielder's choice would leave the team empty-handed again.

Matt Mazzoni pitched the 5th for FPU and caught some bad breaks as the leadoff batter reached on a sharply hit ball that went through the second baseman's legs. After another hit, Evans would capitalize on a pitch left over the plate and crush his second homer of the night to left center. The 3-run shot gave him six RBI on the night.

The FPU sixth was the inning to remember in a night otherwise dominated by AAA pitching. Soares beat out an infield single to start it, his third hit of the day. Scott Laird then belted a ball off Grizzlies' reliever Andrew Kown, smashing it to straightaway right where it would bounce off the wall for a double.

Soares would come around to score on the sacrifice fly from Wes Dorrell and Andrew Douglas drew a walk to put two on again. A strike out and groundout would get the Grizzlies out of the jam however and leave the score 9-1.

Aaron Lynn brought his A-game in the 6th, making minor league hitters look baffled on some swings and misses. He struck out Ford and former San Diego Padre Edgar Gonzalez (brother of Adrian) in a scoreless 6th.

The Sunbirds didn't manage a hit over the last three innings as the Grizzlies bullpen brought the win home. Marc Kroon, throwing in the high 90s, closed out the game. Kyle Lovero and Michael Jimenez each tossed scoreless innings for the Sunbirds in the 7th and 8th.

A good showing from the Fresno Pacific community has the team hoping the series with the Grizzlies can become an annual thing. The Sunbirds will now refocus and get back to business, traveling south on Thursday for a doubleheader with Vanguard (15-18, 11-12 GSAC). The team returns home to face the Lions on Saturday at 2 pm.

In other GSAC action today, #7 Biola strengthened their hold on first place with a 6-3 win over Vanguard. Azusa Pacific, also playing an exhibition with a minor league, fell to the single-A Rancho Cucamonga Quakes 6-4.

The new NAIA rankings were released today, with FPU dropping six spots down to #12 in the poll. Biola is #7 and Cal Baptist #8. Azusa Pacific and Point Loma Nazarene also received votes.