LINCOLN, Calif. — Fresno Pacific baseball (23-21, 18-14 PacWest) wrapped the first day of the doubleheader against Jessup (26-16, 22-14 Pacific West). The Sunbirds soared to an impressive 6-0 lead in the first inning, but the Warriors tied it back up and never looked back for the rest of the day, taking the first game 15-9 and the next 13-4.

GAME 1 | FPU 9, JU 15

In the first inning, the 'Birds took flight with six runs as the Warriors struggled to get an out. Darryl Dilworth singled, followed by an Eric Wilson double. Gabe Henderson walked to load the bases, and Titus Wheelock singled in the first run. Aaron Martinez then delivered a two-RBI single. Chris Clement was hit by a pitch, and Tejean Smith doubled, bringing in three more runs. At the bottom of the inning, Jessup responded in kind and a Warrior runner on third dove inside past the Sunbird catcher to score their fourth run, making it 6-4.

In the second, an inaccurate throw by Jessup, their second error of the inning, led to the seventh run for the 'Birds, allowing Wheelock to make it to first and bring Henderson home. Despite the Sunbirds efforts, the Warriors managed to tie the game, 7-7. Drew Petty came in as relief for Matthew Bettencourt, sending a flyout to Dilworth whose leaping catch stopped Jessup in their tracks.

In the third, a throwing error by FPU's third baseman allowed another runner to score, giving Jessup its first lead of the day, 8-7. First baseman Wheelock swung for the fences in the fourth to tie it right back up at 8, sending it 406 ft for the homer. The Warriors were quick to cut off the Sunbirds with a pickoff at first base to end the inning.

Three additional Warrior runs crossed the plate in the bottom of the fifth. The Sunbirds responded well with a double play to end the inning, 11-8. In the eighth inning, Fresno Pacific's Eric Wilson doubled and scored on a groundout by Wheelock, bringing the score to 12-9. However, Jessup extended its lead with a three-run homer to close the inning at 15-9.
 

GAME 2 | FPU 4, JU 13

In the opening inning, Jessup's Antone homered to right field, giving Jessup a 1-0 lead then significantly jumped ahead in the second inning.

The Warriors tallied a grand slam, followed by a two-run homer, a bases-loaded walk and a two-RBI double, bringing Jessup's lead to 10-0 by the end of the second. The 'Birds did their best to switch the momentum! Fresno Pacific got on the board in the third inning when Wheelock singled to right field, driving in Holden Hirschkorn. The score was 10-1 in favor of Jessup after three innings.

In the fifth inning, catcher Bodhi Verners provided a spark for the Sunbirds with a three-run homer to left field, bringing the score to 10-4. However, Jessup responded in the bottom half with its own three-run home run, ending the game 13-4.

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