LATROBE, Pa. (April 8) – The Saint Vincent baseball team used a pair of stellar pitching performances and a balanced offense to earn a home sweep over Presidents' Athletic Conference foe Bethany College.
In game one, the Bearcats rode a 9-run second inning and a complete game effort on the mound by
Sean McAleer to a 13-3 win, before the nightcap saw
Michael Klingensmith pitch a complete game gem in SVC's 5-0 shutout.
Now winners of three of their past four games, the Bearcats improve to 4-4 in PAC play with the sweep.
Game One – Saint Vincent 13, Bethany 3
In the opener, the Bearcat offense did all of its damage over two innings in the 10-run win, scoring nine times in the second inning and four times in the seventh to enforce the mercy rule.
McAleer worked all seven innings and allowed three runs, scattering six hits and striking out six.
Offensively,
Matthew Lockwich and
Alex Hess each went 2-for-4 and
Dalton Nicklow 2-for-3, with Lockwich driving in four RBIs and Nicklow scoring three runs.
After the Bison jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the first inning, the Bearcats answered back in a big way in the home half of the second, sending 13 batters to the plate to score nine runs. Hess, Lockwich and
Dylan Schmude all had RBI singles, while
Austin Tirpak drew a bases loaded walk,
Billy Perroz drove in a run on a fielder's choice, and Nicklow had a two-run double before stealing home for the Bearcats' ninth run.
McAleer allowed just three baserunners over the next three frames, before the Bison cut the deficit to 9-3 on a two-run homer by Grant Schaffner in the top of the sixth. It was the final blemish on McAleer's ledger, as he retired the final six batters he faced in order.
The Bearcats closed out their scoring in the bottom of the seventh. Perroz walked to lead off the ining, before
Vincent Amatucci was hit by a pitch and Nicklow beat out a bunt base hit to load the bases. After a pair of quick outs, Lockwich came through with a double off the fence in left center, missing a grand slam by less than a foot, to clear the bases and up the lead to 12-3. He would then move to third on a wild pitch, before Schmude walked. An errant pickoff attempt at first base sailed into the right field corner, allowing Lockwich to score the unearned run and close out the 10-run win.
Game Two – Saint Vincent 5, Bethany 0
The hundreds of fans who crowded around Bearcat Ballfield for game two to catch a glimpse of the solar eclipse were treated to a fantastic pitcher's duel between the Bearcats' Klingensmith and Bethany's Logan Bennett.
Klingensmith authored his second career complete game shutout, scattering seven hits and striking out eight batters in the win.
The two pitchers traded zeroes over the first six innings and were both benefactors of strong defense.
In the top of the first, Bethany's first two batters reached on singles, before Klingensmith induced a ground ball to third baseman Amatucci, who started the tailor-made 5-4-3 double play.
In the top of the third, the Bison again saw their leadoff man reach, but Klingensmith struck out the next batter, with catcher
Derek Hald throwing out the potential base thief on the third strike for the double play.
Hald threw out his second runner of the day, and ninth of the season, with one out in the top of the fourth, before Klingensmith started a 1-6-3 double play on a sacrifice bunt attempt in the top of the sixth.
After managing just three hits through the first five innings, Saint Vincent finally found the scoreboard in the bottom of the sixth. Schmude singled with one out, before Hess' sacrifice bunt attempt was misplayed, putting runners at rist and second. Tirpak drew a walk to load the bases, and Perroz followed with an RBI ground out to bring home Schmude with the game's first run. Nicklow then laced a single to center to plate Hess, before Tirpak scored on a wild pitch to give SVC a 3-0 lead.
Klingensmith retired the side in the seventh and then pitched around an error in the eighth to keep the lead at three runs, before the Bearcats added some insurance in the bottom of the ninth. With one out, Perroz doubled to the fence in right-center, and on the very next swing, Nicklow blasted a no-doubter well over the fence in left to extend the lead to 5-0.
Klingensmith went on to retire the side in order in the top of the ninth, getting two strikeouts and a popup to put a bow on the shutout.
The Bearcats tallied nine hits in the win, with Schmude, Amatucci and Nicklow each going 2-for-4. Nicklow drove in three of SVC's five runs.
Bennett suffered the hard-luck loss on the mound for Bethany, allowing three unearned runs on seven hits in seven innings of work, with three strikeouts.
The Bearcats will have a quick turnaround, as they'll be back at home for another PAC doubleheader on Tuesday, April 9, taking on Chatham at 1 p.m. at Bearcat Ballfield.
