FRESNO, Calif. – The Fresno Pacific baseball team opened a four-game set on Thursday night, defeating Academy of Art 2-0 at FPU Diamond. The Sunbirds have now won the first game of the series on four of five occasions to start the season. 
 
INSIDE THE MATCHUPS: 

• Final: FPU 2, ART U 0 
• Records: FPU (8-7), ART U (4-9)
• Location: FPU Diamond | Fresno, Calif.   
• All-Time Series: FPU leads 27-6

 
HOW IT HAPPENED: 

• Reigning PacWest Freshman of the Week Jack Foote beat out a hustle double to open the fifth, and Dylan Lewis followed with a single through the right side to give FPU a 1-0 lead.
• The lineup card flipped over for Michael Warkentin, who doubled Lewis home to push across the final run of the game.
• Academy of Art put the tying run in scoring position in the top of the ninth, but lefty reliever Michael Barker was able to lock down the save.

 
STATS FROM THE DAY: 

• Foote ended the night as the only Sunbird with a multi-hit game, going 2-for-3 at the dish to follow his 8-for-16 series last week. 
• Sunbird starter Nic Boatman picked his first win of the year after fanning seven and holding the Urban Knights scoreless over 6.2 innings of work.
• Tyler Rumbaugh was the first man out of the Sunbird bullpen, giving FPU 1.2 innings before Barker picked up the final two outs of the game.

 
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE: 

• Warkentin extended his hitting streak to a team-high 10 games, while Andrue Lackey has reached base in 15 straight.
• Boatman dropped his season earned run average to 1.27 with the win.

 
SOCIAL:

• Twitter - @fpusunbirds
• Instagram - @fpusunbirds 
• Facebook - /FPUathletics

 
ON DECK: 

• FPU and Academy of Art continue the series on Friday with a doubleheader at FPU Diamond. First pitch is scheduled for 2:00 p.m., with the nightcap scheduled for seven innings.