AUBURNDALE, Fla. – The Spalding University baseball team took advantage of four Wheaton College (Mass.) errors and nine walks, white smacking 15 hits in a 15-5 victory over the No. 18 Lyons this morning at the Lake Myrtle Sports Complex in Auburndale, Fla. as part of the RussMatt Central Florida Invitational. The game was halted in the bottom of the seventh due to the 10-run mercy rule as mandated by the Invitational.
The Lyons, who are ranked in the most recent D3baseball.com national poll, dip to 1-2 on the season, while the Eagles improve to 7-6.
Spalding scored multiple runs in five of the seven innings that were played and also seized on four wild pitches and a balk by Wheaton pitching in addition to a passed ball.
The Lyons broke into the scoring column with a run in the top of the first inning, before the Eagles countered with a pair of runs in the bottom of the frame. Spalding padded the lead with three more runs in the third to take a 5-1 margin. Wheaton cut the deficit to 5-2 with a run in the fourth, but the Eagles scored four times in the bottom of the inning to increase their lead to 9-2. The Lyons pushed across three runs in the top of the sixth to make it 9-5, but it was as close as they got for the rest of the game.
Senior right fielder Tommy Ambrosone (Hopkinton, Mass.) paced Wheaton's offense, going 2-4 with a run scored at the plate. Junior left fielder Kevin Matos (Lawrence, Mass.) reached base three times with a single and a pair of walks drove in two runs and added a stolen base, while first year catcher Tyler Bellan (Franklin, Mass.) and junior second baseman Tommy Beauregard (Salem, Mass.) each went 1-3 with a run scored. First year left-handed starting pitcher Aiden Cardoza (Dartmouth, Mass.) suffered the loss, giving up seven runs (five earned) on seven hits and three walks to go with a pair of strikeouts in three innings of work.
Four players collected multiple hits and four players drove in multiple runs for Spalding. Every Eagle in the lineup, but one, registered a hit and the top five batters in the order combined to score 13 runs. Leadoff hitter and junior shortstop Ethan.Tuttle (Lexington, Ky.) was 3-6 with a double, two runs batted in and three runs scored, while junior right fielder Matthew McDowell (Louisville, Ky.) turned in a 3-5 effort with two RBI, three runs scored and a walk. Senior second baseman Dryden.Schroeder (Carmel, Ind.) was 3-4 with two runs batted in and junior first baseman Evan Fisher (Murfreesboro, Tenn.) knocked in two runs after going 2-4 with a double and a pair of runs scored. Junior Brady Rutherford (Jacksboro, Tenn.) was outstanding in relief for Spalding, hurling two and a third innings of hitless relief to earn the victory and improve to 1-0 on the year.
The Lyons scored the first run of the day when Ambrosone dumped a single into center field, before senior shortstop Mike Maher (Jefferson, Mass.) was hit by a pitch to push Ambrosone into scoring position. Matos responded with a single up the middle to score Ambrosone and give Wheaton a 1-0 edge.
The Eagles knotted the game in the bottom of the frame when Tuttle reached on an infield single, went to second on a wild pitch and scored when the throw from the Lyon shortstop missed the mark trying to cut Tuttle down at third following a ground ball to the left side of the infield. Fisher put Spalding ahead later in the inning with a two-out run-scoring double to right center field.
Cardoza set down Spalding in order in the second, but the Eagles came alive in the third for three runs to take a 5-1 lead. Senior Jacob Spanyer (Louisville, Ky.) and Schroeder keyed the inning with RBI singles, before junior catcher Justin Lauersdorf (Louisville, Ky.) drew a bases loaded walk to force in the fifth run of the game for Spalding.
Wheaton took advantage of an Eagle error and used aggressive baserunning to help manufacture a run to cut the deficit to 5-2 in the top of the fourth. Matos opened the frame with a walk, stole second and went to third when the throw got away on the steal attempt. Matos scampered home on a ground out to second from junior first baseman Timmy Wagner (Hingham, Mass.).
Spalding added four more runs in the fourth to give it some breathing room at 9-2. McDowell contributed in the offensive outburst with an RBI double in addition to a sacrifice fly off the bat of Fisher and another bases loaded walk - this time drawn by junior Donovan Dubuisson (Gibsonton, Fla.) to force in the ninth Eagle run.
The Lyons answered with three runs after loading the bases in the top of the fifth inning. Bellan opened the inning with a single to left, before Beauregard beat out a ground ball to shortstop for a hit. Maher was hit by a pitch for the second time in the game to push the sacks full for Matos, who also drew an RBI base on balls with Wagner repeating the act of patience just a batter later to cut the margin to 9-4. Maher later scored on a wild pitch to make it 9-5, but it was the final run of the day for Wheaton.
Spalding's offense continued to press the Lyons, adding two more runs in the bottom of the fifth to increase its lead to 11-5. Schroeder and junior Whitt.Callahan (Bedford, Ind.) each knocked in a run with singles to fuel the frame. The Eagles crossed the plate four more times in the seventh to give them a 10-run margin to halt the game. Tuttle struck the big blow with a two-run double down the left field line and McDowell ended the game with an RBI single through the left side.
Wheaton returns to the diamond on Wednesday, March 13 when it takes on University of Wisconsin-La Crosse at Northeast Regional Park in Davenport, Fla. for a 9:45 a.m. first pitch, while Spalding plays Mitchell College in a 9:00 a.m. double-header on March 13 at Lake Myrtle Sports Complex.
