LEWISTON, Idaho – Cruz Oxford homered twice and drove in seven runs, but his outstanding effort wasn't enough as the Kansas Wesleyan Coyotes dropped their NAIA World Series debut to Arizona Christian 17-10 on Friday at Harris Field.
 
Oxford hit two 3-run homers, one in the eighth and one in the ninth, to go along with a RBI ground out in the sixth inning for his seven RBI day.
 
The game was scoreless through the first two innings until Arizona Christian put three on the board in the top of the third inning, and then added another in the fifth.
 
Zack Beatty then drove in KWU's first-ever World Series run with a solo homer in the bottom of the fifth inning that made it 4-1.
 
ACU scored five times in the fifth inning to push the lead out to 9-1 before the Coyotes got a pair in the sixth on Jarrett Gable's sacrifice fly and Oxford's ground out.
 
The Firestorm added four more in the seventh and four more in the eighth before the Coyotes got on the board again.
 
Kendall Foster doubled and Gable reached on an error with two outs setting up Oxford's 3-run shot over the batter's eye in center field. Tyler Favretto was then hit by a pitch and Eric Romero walked setting up Beatty's RBI double.
 
In the ninth, Jacob Williamson was hit by a pitch and Foster walked to set up Oxford's second homer of the game.
 
Foster, Oxford and Beatty had two hits each for the Coyotes.
 
Jarrett Brannen took the loss for the Coyotes, going five and two-thirds innings, allowing nine runs on 11 hits with a walk and four strikeouts. Thalen Wright, Cesar Rodriguez, Danny Ramirez and Riley Gwin all saw action on the mound for the Coyotes.
 
The Coyotes are back in action on Saturday at 10:35 Central Time, 8:35 Pacific Time, taking on No. 4 seeded Hope International in an elimination game. The Royals were defeated by Reinhardt 7-5.