The Park University baseball program was splitting time at Comfort Field for the 2026 home opener and in Hesston, Kan. on Friday and Saturday, sweeping the Hesston College Larks, 2-1, 12-5, 12-3, 7-4.

Game 1 | Box Score
In game one, Dian Medina got Park off to a good start with a home run well beyond the right field fence, his second of the season and first at Comfort Field.

An RBI single by the Larks in the top of the third would tie the game, 1-1. Another run in the third, this time by the Pirates, would put Park in the lead again. Jan Marrero had the eventual game winning RBI on a sacrifice fly to center field.

Jean Paul Ramos pitched five strong inning  with eight strikeouts and only three hits. The main opportunity the Larks had were the six walks by Ramos.

Colin Zancanella in a one run game, pitched the final two innings, striking out three on his way to a save.

Game 2 | Box Score
The Pirates did their damage in game two in the third and fourth innings, scoring six runs in both innings. This came in response to a three-run inning by the Larks.

Fabian Morales was on the mound for the Pirates and went five innings strong with four strikeouts.

Edward Gonzalez got the Pirates going with a three-run double in the bottom of the third. Gonzalez saw the ball well this series with 12 RBIs. Jarrett Hamlett kept it going with a triple to score Gonzalez for the lead. The extra-base hits were continued by Marrero to make it 5-3 and finally Jackson Pollich tacked on the 6th run with an RBI single to center field.

There was a run by the Larks in the top of the fourth, but a grand slam by Gonzalez swung the door wide open again for Park, 10-4. Marrero tripled for another RBI and then scored himself by a fielding error by the Larks to make it 12-4.

Jean Rodriguez and Mason Danner cleaned up the final two innings, not allowing a hit or a walk between them. Danner struck out two Larks in the top of the seventh for the win, 12-5.

Game 3 | Box Score
It was another quality 5 inning start by the Pirates, in game three it was Carlos Roses with the nod. He struck out five and only allowed five hits.

The game began with a walk with the bases loaded for the first Park run. A couple of errors, a walk, and a wild pitch would score additional runs, and in a hurry it was 6-0.

In the second inning, the Pirates threatened again and the highlight of the three-run inning was a two-RBI double by, you guessed it, Gonzalez. 

Additional Park runs scored on a ground out in the fourth and two more came in on wild pitches in the fifth, as Park cruised to a 12-1 lead.

Credit the Larks with a pair of home runs, but that would come at the tailend of a mountain of Pirate runs, 12-3.

Nehemias Castillo and Hank Holdenreid were in relief with an inning apiece and no more runs came across to score and an additional five strikeouts would be collected.

Game 4 | Box Score
The Larks had their longest lead of the series, as they led 3-0 through the first four innings.

Dominic Coleman went four innings for Park and struck out four and only allowed five hits.

In the fifth, the Larks got an additionally insurance run to make it 4-0.

It looked bleak, but Gonzalez again showed up when it counted with a two-run home run in the sixth. The Larks walked in a run and another scored on a wild pitch to tie things, 4-4.

An error brought in the fifth run for Park, followed by a two-run home run by Cole Pleacher to seal the deal, 7-4.

James Hayes would get the win, finishing the game with three innings pitched, two hits allowed, three strikeouts, and no earned runs.

The Pirates look ahead to Saturday and Sunday, March 7 and 8 as Culver-Stockton and Clarke come into town for a set of four games.