Video highlights (courtesy SWX Spokane)
Lewiston, Idaho – Jean Muntaner held Southeastern hitless through six innings and Ian Laureano drove in three runs off of three hits to lead Science & Arts as the Drovers eliminated Southeastern from the 2019 Avista NAIA World Series with an 8-4 victory Tuesday afternoon.
As Muntaner was holding the Fire batters in check, the Drovers were building a lead that reached 7-0 before Southeastern scored in the bottom of the seventh.
Alex Sanchez drove in Science & Art’s first run with a single to left to start the scoring in the Drovers’ four-run first. They added their second run when Coleton Horner was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded and their third came on an RBI single from Laureano. Daniel Lafarga’s fielder’s choice pushed Luis Pelayo across the plate for the fourth run of the inning.
After the Drovers built a 7-0 lead with one run in the sixth and two in the seventh, Southeastern came to life in the bottom of the seventh. The Fire scored twice to chase Muntaner then added two more to close to within 7-4. Reliever Rudy Gonzales allowed a Fire single in the eight then shut down Southeastern in order in the ninth to secure another day of play for Science & Arts.
The Drovers (47-11 and seeded second) play Wednesday. Their opponent and game time (3 p.m. or 7 p.m.) will be determined by the outcome of Tuesday’s finale between top-seeded Tennessee Wesleyan and St. Thomas.
Southeastern wraps up its season at 51-12.
