WHITTIER, CA. (MAR. 26, 2026)- Whittier College baseball used a pair of explosive early innings to take control Thursday afternoon, riding three home runs and a strong start from Andrew Berdelis (Huntington Beach, Calif., Huntington Beach) to an 11–4 win over Whitman at Mendez Stadium.
After both teams were turned away in the first, the Poets broke through in the second. Collin O'Driscoll (Belmont, Calif., College of San Mateo) opened the inning with a solo home run to right-center, and after Jackson Brummett (Huntington Beach, Calif., Huntington Beach) singled and Eric Logsdon (Apple Valley, Calif., Victor Valley College) walked, Matthew Mecate (Highland, Calif., CSU Dominguez Hills) launched a three-run homer to right to give Whittier a 4–0 lead.
Whittier blew the game open in the third. Parker Eastwood-Lilles (Vancouver BC, Canada, St. George's Academy) drew a walk, then O'Driscoll and Jay Schulze (Huntington Beach, Calif., Huntington Beach) were hit by pitches to load the bases. Logsdon followed with a sacrifice fly, Alex Jasso (South Gate, Calif., MACES) lined a two-run single to left, and Joe Plaskett (Fremont, Calif., Washington) capped the rally with a three-run home run to center as the Poets plated six runs in the inning to stretch the lead to 10–0.
The Poets added one more in the fourth when Brummett was hit by a pitch, Schulze followed with another hit-by-pitch, and Mecate came through again with an RBI single through the right side to make it 11–0.
Whitman got on the board in the fifth on a two-run home run, then added two more in the eighth on an RBI single and a fielder's choice, but Whittier's early surge was more than enough. Berdelis earned the win after working 7.1 innings, allowing four runs, three earned, while striking out six. Lucas Marr (San Diego, Calif., Clairemont) and Aaron Cazares (Eastvale, Calif., Norco) combined to close out the final 1.2 innings.
Mecate led the way offensively, going 4-for-5 with a home run, two runs scored, and four RBI. Plaskett added a home run and three RBI, while Jasso drove in two, and O'Driscoll opened the scoring with his solo shot. Schulze reached base three times, Brummett scored three times, and the Poets finished with 13 hits in the win. Berdelis was great on the mound, going 7.1 innings and striking out 6.
Whittier will look to carry that momentum forward as conference play continues tomorrow. The Poets will open a 3-game set against the Pomona-Pitzer Sagehens. The first game of the series will be at home tomorrow, March 27, starting at 3:00 PM.
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