MILLINGTON, Tenn. – Winning your season opener is always a great feeling. Winning your season opener in style is just that much better. The (RV) Washington University in St. Louis baseball team did just that as the Bears opened the season with a 10-0, run-rule win in eight innings over Benedictine at the USA Stadium Complex on Friday afternoon.
After a scoreless first and top of the second, the Bears got on the board first in their half of the 2nd inning. Sophomore
Will Taigen started by grounding out to the pitcher for the first out. Senior
Connor Lindsey followed with a single up the middle to reach first. Graduate
Josh Erpenbeck then reached first on a fielding error by the shortstop, which pushed Lindsey to second. WashU loaded the bases when junior
Miles Birke was hit by a pitch.
Senior captain
Anthony Equale then knocked in a pair of runs on a double to deep center field that saw Erpenbeck and Lindsey score and Birke reach third. After sophomore
Ryan Soong struck out, classmate
Kevin Stephens singled to the shortstop, scoring Birke from third and allowing Equale to reach third base.
Senior
Shane Pellegrino ended the inning with a strikeout.
Starting pitcher, junior
Townsend Stevenson, got out of a jam in the top of the third, striking out two with the bases loaded and one out to preserve the shutout.
WashU added a run in the bottom of the fourth as Equale would come to score his first run of the season after initially reaching on a single up the middle. He had reached second on a single by Soong and scored on a single by Stephens through the right side, putting the Bears ahead 4-0.
The lead doubled for WashU in the bottom of the sixth as Birke and Equale were both hit by pitches to start the inning. After Soong flied out, Stephens loaded the bases with a single to left. Another fielding error by the shortstop allowed Pellegrino to reach first and all base runners to advance, scoring Birke.
Sophomore Cooper Green followed that up with a single of his own through the left side, scoring both Equale and Stephens. After both Green and Pellegrino stole second and third bases, respectively, Taigen hit into a sacrifice fly to left that scored Pellegrino, putting WashU up 8-0 after six.
The even-numbered innings were kind to the Bears as Stephens walked and stole second base to start off the bottom of the eighth. With one out, Green walked and a single by Taigen to left allowed Stephens to score from second, putting the Bears ahead 9-0.
First-year
Chance Cromer came in to pinch hit and was instead hit by a pitch to load the bases. Classmate
Drew Dillon followed up with the game-ending sacrifice fly to center field, scoring Green and giving WashU the 10-0 win in eight innings over the Eagles.
Stephens led the Bears at the plate, going 3-for-4 with three singles, two RBIs, two runs scored, and a walk. Equale went 2-for-3 at the plate, including a double with two RBIs and two runs scored.
Soong also had a multi-hit day, while Green, Taigen, Lindsey, and Erpenbeck each recorded one of the 11 WashU hits on the afternoon.
Senior
Isaac Zhang earned his first win of the season on the mound in 4.0 innings of relief work. He finished with six strikeouts while allowing just three hits and one walk. He relieved Stevenson, who finished with seven strikeouts, four hits, and just one walk, in the top of the fifth inning.
WashU is back on the field tomorrow, Saturday, Feb. 21, when they take on Millikin at 11 a.m. at the USA Stadium Complex.
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Elevating scholar-champions requires resources beyond the institutional budget. Through the W Club, generous alumni, parents, and friends provide unrestricted support that is essential to the extraordinary WashU student-athlete experience—and the ongoing growth and development of the department. Annual support for Athletics allows the Bears to consistently rise to national levels of competition and ensures that our student-athletes enjoy exceptional opportunities as they train, compete, and lead. To make a gift to the Annual Fund for Athletics, please visit our secure online giving form or contact the Athletics Advancement Office at athletics@wustl.edu.
