Despite leading for all but three innings Friday, No. 7 Dixie State came away with a split of a Pacific West Conference doubleheader with Fresno Pacific at the FPU Diamond. The Trailblazers got a masterful pitching performance from senior righthander Mason Hilty (Richland, Wash./Richland HS) in taking the opener by a 5-1 count, while two costly sixth-inning errors led to two FPU runs as the Sunbirds rallied to take the nightcap, 4-3 in seven innings.

In game one, the Trailblazers (25-8/14-5 PacWest) plated runs in each of the first three innings to bolt out to a early 3-0 lead. Trey Kamachi (Kapolei, Hawai'i/Kapolei HS) got DSU on the board in the first as he extended his hitting streak to 17-straight games with an RBI-single, then Tyler Baker (Las Vegas, Nev./Bishop Gorman HS) cashed in a Trey Reineke (Aurora, Colo./Smoky Hill HS) walk with a two-out double to the gap in left center to spot Dixie State to a two-run advantage. Jake Davison (Taylorsville, Utah/Taylorsville HS) then padded the DSU lead an inning later as he laced a two-out double down the left field line to plate Kamachi.

The early run support was more than enough for Hilty (W, 7-1), who tied a career-high with nine strikeouts as part of a three-hit gem. Hilty's lone hiccup came in the third inning as he surrendered one unearned run and two of the Sunbirds' three total hits. From that point on the senior was dominant as he retired the final 19 Sunbirds he faced, including four on strikes, en route to his second complete-game victory of the year.

Kamachi collected three of the Trailblazers' nine hits in Friday's opener, while he and Baker each finished with two runs scored.

In the nightcap, the two sides traded first-inning runs as Logan Porter (Surprise, Ariz./Valley Vista HS) opened the scoring with an RBI-single in the DSU first, only to see FPU draw even with a run in the home half of the frame off of junior lefthander Matt Mosca (Las Vegas, Nev./Cimarron Memorial HS) (ND). The Trailblazers took the lead right back one inning later with a Reineke run-scoring fly out, and the senior outfielder would stake Dixie State to a 3-1 lead in the fifth with a solo home run to right field, his third of the season.

Fresno Pacific (10-13/7-8 PacWest) answered with a run in its half of the fifth, then cashed in the two Trailblazer miscues with a run-scoring bunt single and a bases-loaded walk to take its first lead of the day at 4-3. FPU closer Matt Bergandi (S, 6) would come on and work around a one-out walk to Reineke to retire the side in the seventh to end the game.

Dixie State was limited to five hits in the finale, which included Kamachi seeing his hitting streak halted at 17 games. Mosca pitched into the fifth and scattered two runs and eight hits with three strikeouts, but did not figure in the decision.

Dixie State will look to salvage a split of its four-game series with FPU as the two teams will conclude the four-game series Saturday at 11 a.m. (PT), at the FPU Diamond.