Wilkes Baseball Drops Doubleheader Against Kenyon College
FORT PIERCE, FL. – The Wilkes University baseball team fell in a doubleheader sweep at the hands of Kenyon College from the Lawnwood Complex on Sunday afternoon.
The Colonels fall to 1-3 following the doubleheader defeats, while the Owls move to 5-0 in the early part of the season.
In the first few innings, Jack Smale (Kunkletown, PA/Pleasant Valley) recorded two hits for the Navy and Gold after singling to left in the first and doubling in the first, once again to left field.
Kenyon opened the scoring in the bottom of the third following a double to left field from Giovanni Giuliani made it a 1-0 ballgame. Following an error, bit by pitch and a sacrifice fly to left field, the Owls quickly pushed their lead to four runs.
Wilkes responded in the top of the fifth when Smale once again grabbed a base hit, driving home Even Melberger, who scored from second base to make it 4-1. Devin Market later drove Smale home when he singled to center, making it a 4-2 contest.
Nathan Loch (Effort, PA/Pleasant Valley) evened things up with a two-run single in the top of the sixth inning which drove Jacob Cambria (Elysburg, PA/Southern Columbia) and Matthew Show (Clarks Summit, PA/Abington Heights) home.
In the Bottom of the sixth, Liam Huffman (East Stroudsburg, PA/East Stroudsburg South) struck out the side to keep the game tied up entering the seventh inning.
The Colonels were unable to score in the top of the seventh, giving Kenyon the opportunity to walk it off, which they did. A wild pitch from Jake Miller (Chambersburg, PA/James Buchanan) reached the backstop, allowing Niko Price to score from third, sealing a 5-4 victory.
Colonels pitching combined for six strikeouts in game one, with Huffman recording the loss. Kenyon struck out seven, with Jack Enger earning the win.
In game two, the scoring started in the third inning once more. Price began a five-run third with a two-run single to left. Otto McDill singled to drive in two more runs, with Matt Ardell finishing off the inning with an RBI single to give the Owls a 5-0 lead.
Miller answered back in the bottom of the third with a high fly ball to deep left field which bounced off the base of the wall, driving in three Colonels to make it 4-3.
In the fourth inning, Richie Rossi (Hazleton, PA/Hazleton Area) scored on a passed ball before Michael Sabella (Cornelius, NC/Hough) drove in two runs to complete the comeback and give the Navy and Gold a 6-5 lead.
In the top of the fifth, McDill answered with another RBI, this time a double to center field to drive in Giuliani.
Wilkes re-established their one-run lead with another hit from Smale, this time driving in Gavin Lacoe (Clarks Summit, PA/Abington Heights) to make it 7-6. Show bunted in the bottom of the sixth, making it to first on a fielder's choice, allowing Andres Cruz (Wayne, PA/Radnor) to score, doubling the Colonels' lead.
Kenyon scored twice in the top of the seventh to make it an 8-8 contest, with McDill driving in the go-ahead runs in the top of the eighth to clinch a 10-8 win.
In game two, the Wilkes Pitching staff combined for seven strikeouts, with Tyler Ansell (Knoxville, TN/South Doyle) recording four of them in the start. Shaun O'Donnell (New Tripoli, PA/Northwestern Lehigh) was given the loss. Kenyon's pitchers struck out seven batters as well, with the win earned by Jackson Niedel.
Between the two games, Smale recorded five hits and two walks, while driving in two runs.
The Colonels return to the field tomorrow, March 2 for a late-morning matchup against Albright College. First pitch against the Lions is slated for 10 a.m. in Fort Pierce, FL.
