FRESNO, Calif. – The Fresno Pacific baseball team was tripped up twice on Friday, falling 2-0 in the opener of a twin bill before dropping the nightcap by a final of 17-7.
 
INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
Final: Game 1: APU 2, FPU 0 | Game 2: APU 17, FPU 7
Records: FPU (7-7, 4-4 PacWest), APU (20-2, 10-2 PacWest)
Location: FPU Diamond | Fresno, Calif.   
All-Time Series: APU leads 31-30
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GAME 1:  
• The two teams exchanged scoreless trips to the plate before the Cougars finally scratched across a run in the fifth inning behind a Grant Gamble single.
• APU took advantage of an FPU error an inning later, taking a 2-0 lead that held up as the final score.
• Alex Garcia went the distance on the mound for the Sunbirds, scattering seven hits and allowing just one earned run while fanning five in his second consecutive complete game.
• Right hander Layne Henderson picked up his third win after striking out 13 Sunbirds over the first eight frames before giving way to the bullpen.
• A night after being on the wrong end of a walk-off balk, John Szczesny overcame a two-out double to notch his second save of the year.
 
GAME 2:
• Nic Boatman struck out the side on just 12 pitches to open the game, and an RBI groundout from Ross Dodds in the home half helped the Blue and Orange strike first.
• The Cougars scratched across three runs over the next two innings, taking a 3-1 lead on a sac fly off the bat of third baseman Osvaldo Tovalin.
• Adam Aleman cut the deficit down to one with a sac fly of his own in the sixth, but Gamble opened the seventh with a solo homer to push the Cougar lead back to two.
• FPU began the home half with back-to-back singles before Braden Frankfort and Ross Dodds each plated a run to pull the 'Birds even.
• Nate Case then laid down a textbook safety squeeze to give Fresno Pacific a 5-4 advantage with two innings to play.
• The lead was shortlived, however, as APU opened the floodgates, scoring 13 runs over the game's final two innings.
• Dodds, Case and Aleman were each credited with two RBI, while Sievers and Alvarez each turned in a multi-hit performance.
• Boatman's night came to a close in the seventh after just two earned runs and five strikeouts.
• Southpaw Tyler Rumbaugh was saddled with his first loss of the season, though the following five relievers struggled to combine for just six outs.
• APU's Hayden Jorgenson picked up the win in relief despite allowing three runs in his lone inning of work.
 
ON DECK:
• The Sunbirds return to action on Thursday, when they host Biola in the opener of a four-game PacWest Conference series. First pitch from FPU Diamond is slated for 6:00 p.m.