AUBURNDALE, Fla. — The Wheaton College (Mass.) baseball team was shut out by Bethel University (Minn.), 5-0, this morning at the Lake Myrtle Sports Complex as part of the RussMatt Central Baseball Invitational.
The Lyons dip to 4-5 on the season, while the Royals improve to 8-3.
Bethel collected nine hits on the day and its pitching scattered seven hits without allowing a run.
The Royals scored single runs in the first and third innings, before scoring three times in the sixth to give them a comfortable lead before closing out the game.
Senior first baseman Timmy Wagner (Hingham, Mass.) had a game-high three hits in four at-bats to lead Wheaton, while sophomore right fielder Shawn Cali (East Taunton, Mass.) reached base with a single and a hit batsman. Junior right-hander Chris Carbonara (Brockton, Mass.) suffered the loss in the start to drop to 0-1, giving up two runs on five hits and two walks to go with six strikeouts in five innings. Junior lefty reliever Evan Mello (New Bedford, Mass.) yielded just one hit and fanned three batters in two and a third innings of scoreless work.
Senior second baseman Nolan Jurgenson (Rochester, Minn.) was 2-4 with two runs batted in to pace Bethel. Senior first baseman Xavier Lortie (Livermore, Calif.) also drove in a pair of runs and sophomore left fielder Carson Christiansen (Newport, Minn.) was 2-4 with a run scored. Fifth-year senior shortstop Zach Thompson (Woodbury, Minn.) was 2-5 with a double and a run scored. Sophomore right-handed starter Jackson Hunter (Minnetonka, Minn.) was outstanding on the mound for the Royals, giving up six hits and a walk in addition to striking out seven batters in seven innings to earn the win and improve to 2-0.
Bethel cracked the scoring column in the top of the first inning to take a 1-0 edge. Senior right fielder Isaac Call (Kerkhoven, Minn.) began the rally with a two-out walk, stole second and came around to score on a single to right-center field off the bat of Lortie. The Royals added a run to double their lead in the third with another run driven in by Lortie. Thompson doubled to left center, advanced to third on a wild pitch and was able to score on a ground out to first base from Lortie.
Bethel got some breathing room with a three-run sixth to take a 5-0 lead. Christiansen began another two-out rally for the Royals with a single up the middle, before senior designated hitter Sam Johnson (Stillwater, Minn.) drew a walk. Junior catcher Matt Friesen (Saint Cloud, Minn.) singled to center field to knock in Chrstiansen and took second base on the throw home to put two runners in scoring position and set Bethel up to increase its four-run lead. Jurgenson came through with a two-run single to right field to bring home both runs and give the Royals a healthy five-run lead.
Bethel limited the Lyons to three hits in the final four innings to come away with the victory.
Wheaton returns to action on Tuesday, March 18 when it travels to North Dartmouth, Mass. to take on University of Massachusetts Dartmouth at 3:30 p.m., while the Royals meet Ohio Northern University tomorrow at Northeast Regional Park in Davenport, Fla. for a 10:00 a.m. first pitch.
