Top-Ranked Cal Lutheran Shows Redlands Its Stuff

Cal Lutheran demonstrated why it is the top-ranked baseball team in NCAA Division III on Saturday, rallying to win both games of a doubleheader at Redlands, 5-2 and 21-12.

The sweep avenged the Kingsmen’s loss to the Bulldogs on Friday, their lone defeat in Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play, and gave Cal Lutheran (23-5, 14-1) a three-game lead over Redlands (16-11, 11-4) with six to play.

Cal Lutheran trailed, 11-4, after three innings in game two, but a grand slam by Carlos Cardenas in the fourth ignited the Kingsmen. They scored six runs in the fifth inning to lead, 14-11, and added five in the ninth.

Cardenas was three for four with four runs batted in and Eddie Lample went three for four, scored twice and had five RBIs in the second game. Gabe Diaz was three for six with three RBIs. Reliever Tim Barber (2-1) entered the game in the third inning and pitched 2 2/3 innings to earn the win.

In the first game, Redlands led, 1-0, through four, but run-scoring hits by Lample and Cardenas gave Cal Lutheran a 2-1 edge. Mike Winslow (6-0) pitched a complete game despite yielding 13 hits.