Posted: May 05, 2022
WILMINGTON, Ohio - In fitting fashion to this season's weather, the Wilmington College baseball team concluded the home portion of its schedule with a 6-3 victory in the rain over Miami University-Hamilton on Thursday afternoon.
The win improves the Fightin' Quakers' record to 20-18, marking the program's first winning season since 2005.
The Herriers (21-19) scored first as three of the first four reached base via a hit. The third of those hits, a double off the bat of Ethan Limon, scored the game's first run. Jordan Edrington attempted to go first to home on the double to deep left field, but he was thrown out at the plate as the relay of Jesse Reliford to Tyler Shaneyfelt to Aaron Burns gunned him down. WC starter Kaleb Stines struck to the next batter to end the inning.
In the bottom half of the inning, Wilmington took control with a three-run inning that included an RBI-single from Caleb Scott after Zach Christensen walked and stole a base, an RBI-groundout from Dominic Depa and an RBI-double from Burns. The hosts would add another run in the second on an infield single from Christensen.
A half-hour rain delay stalled the top of the third, but Stines wasn't bothered, inducing a groundout to third to strand a runner in scoring position. The Quakers did just that in the bottom half as Jared Lammert doubled to open the inning, but didn't come around to score. In the bottom of the fourth, WC loaded the bases with two walks and a bunt single from Shaneyfelt, but came away with just a single run on a Christensen walk with the bases loaded.
Trailing 5-1, Miami-Hamilton tallied two unearned runs in the fifth on a Limon single to left center, but Wilmington got one of those runs back in the seventh as Lammert singled home Christensen. That proved to be the last at bat of the game as more rain came down, causing the contest to finish in the bottom of the seventh inning.
Stines improved to 3-1 on the season but allowing just a single earned run on seven hits with six strikeouts in seven innings of work. Dylan Beal took the loss for the Herriers, allowing four earned runs on seven hits with four walks in four innings pitched.
Offensively, the top of WC's lineup accounted for seven of the team's 10 hits. Christensen went 2-for-2 with two walks, two RBIs, two runs scored and three stolen bases. Lammert tallied a 3-for-4 afternoon with a double while Burns, who also hit a double, finished 2-for-3. Limon led Miami-Hamilton with a 2-for-4 performance with all three RBIs in defeat.
Wilmington (20-18) will close its 2022 season at Ohio Northern University on Sunday (note the date change). First pitched is scheduled for 1 p.m.