VALLEY BASEBALL ROUNDUP : Santa Barbara Hands CLU Its First Defeat

After running roughshod over its first four opponents, the Cal Lutheran baseball team lost, 7-5, against host UC Santa Barbara on Monday.

Cal Lutheran, an NAIA District 3 school, allowed UCSB (8-5), an NCAA Division I school, to score two unearned runs in the first two innings, but battled back to a 2-2 tie in the fourth when Dan Weis and Tim Lewis scored on Mike Borzello’s suicide squeeze bunt.

UCSB’s Sean Luft hit a two-out, three-run home run in the seventh to put the Gauchos ahead, 7-2. Cal Lutheran, which managed only seven hits, rallied in the final two innings but left the bases loaded in the ninth.

Cal Lutheran designated hitter Peter Washington padded his .600-plus batting average with a two-for-three day.

Tim Wimbish (0-1) took the loss in relief of Kevin O’Neill, who surrendered two earned runs in 6 2/3 innings.

Harbor 5, Canyons 1--Canyons left 11 men on base in a semifinal game of the Casey Stengel Tournament, and Harbor turned two hits into four runs in the fourth inning.

Canyons (6-2) scored in the bottom of the first when Ronnie Robart walked, advanced to third on an errant pitchout and scored on Gary Morgan’s groundout.

However, Harbor tied the game in the third, then took advantage of three walks, a hit batsman and a Canyons error in the fatal fourth.

Jeff Adams (0-1) was the starter and loser for Canyons.

Pierce 16, Compton 2--Pierce didn’t score 20 runs in the first inning as it did in its first meeting with Compton, but did get all the runs it needed when first baseman Pat Fairly, son of former Dodger star Ron Fairly, hit a grand slam in the first inning of the home nonconference game.

Fairly, the cleanup hitter, hit his first home run of the season, and Pierce (5-3) hit four home runs.

Center fielder Tony Jordan hit a two-run shot in the second, third baseman Pat Houston knocked a three-run home run in the fourth and right fielder Mike Stephenson hit a two-run home run in the sixth.

Jordan finished three for four with two stolen bases and scored four runs, and Pierce starter Kurt Lowry (3-1) earned the victory.