Phoenix, Ariz.-- OUAZ Baseball delivered an offensive explosion on the road Friday night, rolling past Nelson University Arizona 21-1 to improve to 13-5 on the season.
The Spirit wasted little time getting on the board, scoring in the opening inning before completely breaking the game open with a massive nine-run third. Rolen Driscoll started the rally with an RBI single, followed by a two-run double from Mason Whitehead. Manny Morales then delivered the biggest swing of the inning, launching a three-run homer down the right-field line as OUAZ piled on. Additional runs from aggressive baserunning, an RBI groundout from Matthew Carter, and another RBI hit from Evan Mendoza pushed the Spirit lead to 10-0.
OUAZ kept the pressure on in the fourth, highlighted by a two-run homer from Isaiah Nava to extend the advantage to 12-0. From there, the Spirit continued to add insurance runs in the seventh and an explosive six-run eighth inning to put the game well out of reach.
The Spirit offense was dominant throughout the night, piling up 27 hits. Morales led the way with a huge performance at the plate, going 5-for-6 with four RBIs and four runs scored, while Trevor Lesperance collected four hits and two RBIs. Nava added two hits including his home run, and multiple other Spirit players finished with multi-hit games as OUAZ showcased production throughout the lineup.
On the mound, Austin Humphres struck out five over three scoreless innings to start the game. Tyler Johnson earned the win in relief, and the OUAZ pitching staff combined for 17 strikeouts while allowing just six hits and one run in the dominant performance.
OUAZ will continue the series against Nelson University Arizona tomorrow, returning home to Surprise, Arizona, with first pitch scheduled for 5:15 p.m. MST at the Surprise Spring Training Complex.
