LOS ANGELES, Calif. – Caltech Baseball headed to Occidental College on Saturday for a doubleheader set, splitting the day for the Beavers' first-ever series win over the Tigers

It would be the first-year Kenji Farrell (Novi, Mich. / Detroit Country Day School) who would start the game on the mound for the Beavers in the first game of the doubleheader and it was a good start to the game. In the first inning, he sat down the side 1-2-3, but in the second inning, things started to turn for the Tiger's sake. Three hits and four runs were scored by Occidental in the bottom of the second inning with Alejandro Ducreux and Thomas Munch both notching two-RBI hits so at the end of two innings, it was 4-0 Tigers.

In the fourth inning, the Tigers would add a couple more runs, and once again it came off the bat of Munch who recorded his second home run of the season, a solo shot. Ben Rutkin also came up with a big hit in the fourth, ripping a two-RBI double to right field and extending the Tigers lead to 7-0. First-year pitcher Lucas Favretto (Pasadena, Calif. / St. Francis) would enter the game for Farrell in the fourth inning and he kept the Tigers bats at bay as he would go 4.1 innings allowing four hits, only one run, and a strikeout.

Caltech's offense had a relatively quiet game, but it was third baseman Mark Hu (San Jose, Calif. / The Harker School) who shined for the Beavers. Hu went 2-3 on the day with a walk and two RBIs. In the sixth inning, Hu hit a two-run home run, his first of the season and the first since his freshman year in 2023. That, ultimately, would be the only scoring the Beavers did in game one as they closed out the early game with an 8-2 loss.

Game two is where the Beavers would bounce back but it didn't seem that way to begin the game. Joseph Pieper (Palatine, Ill. / Palatine) is who the Beavers would turn to as their starting pitcher for the last game of the series, and quickly, the Tigers were able to jump on him. In the bottom of the first, the Tigers managed two hits and two walks off of Pieper, and after a two-RBI double from catcher Logan Rooney, Caltech found themselves in a 2-0 after one.

The fourth inning is when the runs would resume, this time it was the Beavers who found themselves on the scoring end of things putting up three runs in the inning. Centerfielder Jack Fishel (Baltimore, Md. / Boys' Latin School of Maryland) flew out to start the inning but after back-to-back walks to third baseman Mark Hu and designated hitter Jack Bernhardt (Littleton, Colo. / Columbine), the Beavers had a scoring threat building. 

Tigers starter Sean Elsee would strike out the next hitter putting the Beavers in a spot where they needed a clutch two-out hit. First baseman Brendan Flaherty (Narragansett, RI / Lake Forest Academy) would walk to load the bases for first-year shortstop William Minatel (Brecksville, Ohio / Brecksville-Broadview Heights) who came up and singled to right field. Everyone moved up a base and now it was time for second baseman Garrett Knuf (Laguna Niguel, Calif. / Dana Hills) to contribute to the party. Knuf, who had three hits on the day, collected one of them here as he hit an infield single to score two runs after a throwing error from Tiger's shortstop Daniel Major. This put the Beavers up 3-2 and that score would hold until the sixth inning.

In the sixth, Occidental would tie the game up. Three singles from Rutkin, Tommy Woods, and Tyler Kubo loaded the bases with two outs for Munch who would walk on four pitches to tie the game. Coach Whitehead then turned to junior Jacob Alderete (Murrieta, Calif. / Murrieta Mesa) to escape the jam, which he did, getting Taylor Cann to line out to Fishel in centerfield.

Onto the top of the eighth inning where the game was still deadlocked at 3-3 and the Beavers were able to get the lead back. Hu was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning and after a sacrifice bunt from Bernhardt to move Hu to second, right fielder Thorsen Kristufek (McKinney, Texas /  McKinney) singled to center and cashed Hu to give Caltech a 4-3 lead. Flaherty and Minatel would both reach base via a hit-by-pitch and a single to load the bases for Garrett Knuf. Once again, Knuf came in clutch with a single to right, scoring Kristufek and making it a 5-3 ballgame.

In the ninth inning, the Beavers would add one more insurance run on the bat of Bernhardt who singled to score Fishel and take a 6-3 lead into the bottom half of the inning. Jacob Alderete sat down the Tigers 1-2-3 in their last time up at bat and got the win for his performance. Alderete went 3.1 innings allowing only two hits and keeping the Tigers off the board, securing his first pitching win of the season.

With the series win, Caltech won their first series against Occidental in program history and their second SCIAC conference series win since 2003. The team now sits at 5-7 to open up the year.

The next challenge for Coach Whitehead and his Beavers will be next weekend when the Beavers head over to Tuscon, Arizona for the Tuscon Invitational Games. The Beavers will face the Crown College Polars on Saturday, Mar. 8 at 8 a.m. before taking on the Linfield University Wildcats later that day at a scheduled time of 3 p.m.

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