CHESTER, Pa. – The Wilkes University baseball team plated 20+ runs for the second time this season Monday afternoon, defeating the Widener Pride 20-10 in seven innings at Widener Baseball Field.

Wilkes improves to 17-11 with the victory, while Widener falls to 15-15.

After Jack Smale (Kunkletown, PA/Pleasant Valley) recorded the opening hit of the game with a double to right center field, Jack Mathis (Exeter PA/Wyoming Area) put Wilkes on the board with an RBI single and advance. After an Andres Cruz (Wayne, PA/Radnor) walk, Michael Sabella (Cornelius, NC/Hough) cleared the bases with a two-RBI single up the middle to put the Colonels ahead 3-0.

The hosts responded in kind, putting five runs up in the bottom of the first to take their first lead of the day. Cruz put Wilkes back on top in the next half inning with a three-run blast to left field, his first homer of the afternoon. After a 1-2-3 bottom of the second for the Pride, Jake Miller (Chambersburg, PA/James Buchanan) hit a sacrifice fly to make it 7-4 Wilkes heading into the bottom of the third.

Widener took the lead once again in their half of the third, scoring four with the bases loaded by Colonel pitcher Wilton Abreu (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic/Liceo Americo Pérez Tolentino). After being replaced by Nikolas Schwartz (Jim Thorpe, PA/Jim Thorpe), the Pride walked in a run and scored three more on back-to-back RBI singles to take a 9-6 lead.

Wilkes' offense exploded in the fifth, plating seven runs to take the lead for the third and final time on the afternoon. Gannon Decker (Hawley, PA/Wallenpaupack Area) got things started with a double to left field, and was brought home on a Jacob Cambria (Elysburg, PA/Southern Columbia) bunt after reaching third on a failed pick off. After loading the bases with two walks, Mathis brought home two more with single to left, putting the Colonels up 10-9. Jack Smale (Kunkletown, PA/Pleasant Valley) then advanced to third on a wild pitch and scored on a failed pickoff attempt. Jeremiah Atwell (Eastlake, OH/Willoughby South) and Tyler Uram (Carbondale Twp, PA/Lakeland) finished off the inning with back-to-back home runs, a two-run blast to left and solo shot to left center respectively, cementing the Colonel advantage 14-9.

In the top of the sixth Cruz made sure to put the game out of reach with his second three-run home run of the afternoon, bringing the lead to 17-10. Atwell then hit his second home run of the day in the seventh, followed by a hit-by-pitch for Mathis with the bases loaded to plate another run, and a final Cruz RBI to secure the 20-10 lead. A 6-4-3 double play in the bottom of the seventh then ended the game with the mercy rule.

Schwartz (2-1) pitched the win for Wilkes, going 4.1 innings allowing two runs (one earned) on four hits with three strikeouts. At the plate, Cruz led the team with four hits and seven RBIs, followed by Mathis who went 3-for-3 with three RBIs. Sabella, Atwell, and Uram also had multi-hit days for the Colonels.

Jaime Duffy (0-1) was given the loss for the Pride, allowing five runs in the seventh on three hits. Kevin Bukowski and Braedyn Clinton each had two hits and two RBIs to lead the home team.

Wilkes returns to action tomorrow as they host Lycoming College at Bruggeworth Field for a Landmark Conference clash. First pitch against the Warriors is scheduled for 3:30 p.m.