TERRE HAUTE, Indiana - The Mount St. Joseph baseball team was on the road on Saturday, taking on the Rose-Hulman Fightin' Enginners in the first two games of a three-game HCAC series. The Lions led in both games but fell by walk-off in game one before coming back to win game two.
GAME ONE | Rose 7 - MSJ 6
The Mount threatened in the top of the first inning, getting two on with only one out in the frame before a double-play by Rose erased the threat.
The Lions sent senior lefthander
Sam Huston to the mound to start the game, he would strike out the side in the top of the first to set the tone. In the end he pitched 5.0 innings allowing 4 hits and 2 earned runs while striking out 8.
In the top of the second the Lions got the scoring started, scoring five times in the frame to take control of the game.
Andrew Clements and
Jackson Gutzwiller led off with walks,
Zac Clow then laid down a would be sacrifice bunt but the freshman beat it out to load the bases with no outs.
AJ Meyer drilled an RBI single into center field, an out later
Jordan Harley lace an RBI single of his own into center. On the play Clow would also score on an error by the left fielder. Buckle advanced the runners on a ground out and
Brennan Martin was intentionally walked, setting up
Ethan Mason who hit a two-run doublee into left field.
Rose bounced back scoring three times in the bottom of the third inning, and the Lions added one in the top of the fourth.
In the sixth inning
Daniel Brayton was called on to relieve Huston. The senior struggled, he walkeed the first two batters he faced, before retiring the next two. He allowed an RBI single, and then hit the next Fightin' Engineer to load the bases. He was lifted for
Carson Taulbee, on Taulbee's first pitch he allowed a check swing RBI single. He then stranded the bases loaded with a big strikeout. In the end he would throw 2.1 innings allowing onl two hits while striking out four.
In the ninth the Lions called on closer
Matt Frye in a game they led 6-5. The leadoff hitter tripled to straight away center over the head of
AJ Meyer who was playing shallow on the play. After a walk, Rose would tie the game on the play the Lions made an error that allowed the go ahead run to move to third with no outs. The Mount then tried to employ a five-man infield as
Michael Samano was entered. After a walk loaded the bases, Frye got a big strikeout before a single into left field from Rose ended the ballgame.
GAME TWO | MSJ 6 - Rose 3
In game two of the double-header, the Lions sent right hander
Nolan Miller to the mound to start the game. Nolan continued his outstanding run of form, throwing the front 7.0 innings allowing 7 hits and 2 earned runs while striking out 8.
The Lions got the first run of the game in the third inning, with two outs Meyer and Harley hit back-to-back singles into center. Buckle then got them on the board with an RBI single into left field.
They would add two more in the fourth inning once again doing it with two outs in the inning.
Kaden Snodgrass hit a two out single into left and Clow drilled his second homerun of the season to put the Lions ahead 3-0.
They played small ball in the fifth to add an insurance run, Meyer led off with a double. Harley laid down a sacrifice bunt to move him to third and Buckle got down a perfect saftey squeeze to give the Lions a 4-0 lead.
Rose finally scored in the bottom of the sixth.
In the top of the seventh the Mount took advantage of a pair of Rose-Hulman errors to score two more, pushing their lead out to 6-1.
Miller was out to start the eighth inning, but the first two Engineers reached base and he was lifted for
Zach deSylva. Rose would score twice in the inning to draw within three, with both runs charged to Miller. Zach would pitch a perfect ninth to nail down a much needed HCAC win for the Lions.
UP NEXT : These two teams will square off again tomorrow in the rubber match of the series, that game is scheduled to get underway at Noon in Terre Haute.
