AZUSA, Calif. – Hawai'i Pacific University battled No. 24 Azusa Pacific at every turn on Saturday, but nationally ranked APU swept both games of the PacWest Conference doubleheader 15-12 in the first game and 4-3 in the seven-inning night cap at the Cougar Baseball Complex.
 
The Sharks (17-22, 11-18) had leads in both contest. The Cougars (29-13, 18-6) moved into a tie for the PacWest lead with their sixth straight win and a sweep of the four-game series.
 
Offensively, sophomore Haydon Huff of Riverside, Calif./Woodcrest Christian was 5-for-7 on the day with two RBIs and a run scored, and junior Elijah Maris of Atlanta, Ga./Bloomington (Ind.) University went 4-for-7 on the day with a home run, two doubles, 4 RBIs, and two runs scored.
 
The Sharks jumped out to a 6-2 lead in the third inning. In the first inning, redshirt sophomore Nicholas Jio of San Diego, Calif./Scripps Ranch tripled, then stole home. The second inning featured back-to-back home runs as Maris hit a two-run bomb and freshman Mackenzee Higuchi of Aiea, Hawai'i/Mid-Pacific Institute followed with a solo shot. And in the third, plated two more on a sacrifice foul fly and an RBI single by Huff.
 
APU, who scored two in the bottom of the first, added four in the bottom of the third thanks to an RBI double and a two out bases-loaded outfield error that allowed all three baserunners to score to tie the game at 6. In the fourth the Cougars retook the lead with an RBI single and added two more in the fifth with a Casey Dykstra homer lead off homer and another RBI single to make it 9-6.
 
HPU rallied back with five runs in the top of the seventh with an RBI single from sophomore Dominic Folks of Arvada, Colo./Arvada West, an RBI fielder's choice by junior Richard Higa of Honolulu/University Lab with a throwing error that plated a third run, another Huff RBI single and a Maris sacrifice fly to take an 11-9 lead.
 
APU countered in the bottom of the seventh with a 3-run Tido Robles home run to claim a 12-11 advantage.
 
The Sharks replied in the eighth with an RBI single from senior Braxton Wehrle of Las Vegas, Nev./Bishop Gorman to tie the game at 12-12.
 
But in the fateful bottom of the eighth, an RBI single and a homer from Jeffery Castillo gave the Cougars the 15-12 score.
 
HPU got a Huff single to lead off the ninth, was stranded.
 
Sophomore Makana Quia (1-2) of Waipahu, Hawai'i/Waipahu took the loss in relief, allowing six runs, five earned, on four hits and two walks with three strikeouts in two innings. Start Max Beaulieu of Rancho Cucamonga, Calif./Ranch Cucamonga went three innings allowing six runs, three earned on three hits with four walks and four strikeouts. Junior Markus Ramos of Ewa Beach, Hawai'i/Campbell allowed three runs on five hits with a walk and two strikeouts in 1.1 innings, while senior Zack McHone of Bakersfield, Calif./Liberty Hills threw 1.2 shutout innings of hitless ball with two walks and a strikeout.
 
APU used five pitchers with reliever Korey Shepard (2-2) getting the win with one run on three hits and a walk in 1.2 innings. Dykstra came in from centerfield to pick up his third save of the year allowing one hit with a strikeout in one inning. Starter David Hays pitched two innings allowing six runs on five hits with two walks and three strikeouts. Declan Kearney allowed five runs, three earned on three hits with two walks and a strikeout in one-third of an inning, while David Wylie gave up three hits in four innings with two strikeouts.
 
Game two was scoreless until HPU plated a run in the top of the third on an RBI single from freshman T.J. Smith of Sacramento, Calif./Laguna Creek.
 
However the Cougars answered in the bottom of the third with a two-RBI double. And in the fourth, Dykstra belted his second home run of the day to lead off the inning with an insurance run coming on a throwing error to make it 4-1.
 
The Sharks rallied in the top of the sixth, getting one run on a Maris RBI single, then got a second run when Higuchi drilled an RBI single through the right side. But the Sharks got greedy and tried to tie the game on the play with Huff thrown out at the plate to end the inning trailing 4-3.
 
HPU got a baserunner on via a walk in the top of the seventh, but couldn't score.
 
Freshman starter Izaiah Ayala (0-3) of Diamond Bar, Calif./Bishop Amat was charged with the loss in allowing two runs on two hits with two walks and three strikeouts in 2.1 innings. Sophomore Daniel Cortez of Diamond Bar, Calif./Diamond Ranch allowed one hit in one-third of an inning, while junior Cole Mayeshiro of Mililani, Hawai'i/Mililani finished the game allowing two runs, one earned, on three hits with three strikeouts in 3.1 innings.
 
Taylor Ouellette got the win in relief, throwing 2.1 shutout innings on three hits, while starter Michael Gill went only 2.2 innings allowing a run on one hit with three walks and a strikeout. Grason Gifford pitched one inning allowing two runs on three hits with a walk, while Andrew White got his first save of the season with one hitless, shutout inning allowing a walk.
 
The Sharks close the season with doubleheaders at Biola on Wednesday and Thursday. Both twinbills start at 9 a.m. HST (Noon PDT).