ST. LOUIS, Mo. – The No. 12 Washington University in St. Louis baseball team kicked off its final non-conference weekend of the season in style with a doubleheader sweep of (RV) Gustavus Adolphus on Saturday at Kelly Field. The Bears opened with a commanding 11-3 win in game one before coming from behind to close out game two with a 13-9 win.
WashU 11, GAC 3
Runs were at a premium for most of the first game, but WashU was able to get on the board first in the bottom of the opening frame. With two outs, and sophomore
Ryan Soong on first after hitting a single through the left side, first-year
Jacob Witte hit the ball through the right side that allowed Soong to take third. When the Gusties threw down to second to attempt to get Witte out, Soong took off for home and scored on a double steal.
The 1-0 WashU lead would hold up until the sixth inning. GAC led off with a single and then a walk before the Bears got the first out. A double by Simon James allowed both runners to score and give the Gusties their only lead of the contest, 2-1.
After a flyout in the top of the seventh, Isaiah Hasz singled for GAC and reached second on a failed pickoff error. Andrew Glovich switched places with Hasz on a double to left, scoring a run and putting the visitors ahead 3-1.
However, that was the final run scored by GAC in the first game.
The Bears tied the game up in the bottom of the frame with a pair of runs. Sophomore
Cooper Greene led off with a single and reached second on a groundout by Pellegrino. Greene then reached third on a single by first-year
Eli Sitzer through the left side.
After a pitching change, sophomore
Kevin Stephens singled up the middle, putting Sitzer on second and allowing Greene to score. After a wild pitch put the runners on second and third, first-year
Chance Cromer hit a deep sacrifice fly that allowed Sitzer to score and tie the game at 3-3.
The eighth inning broke the game wide open as the Bears scored eight runs in the inning on only four hits while GAC committed two errors. WashU sent 12 batters to the plate, with junior
Anthony Equale, Witte, and sophomore
Miles Birke each taking two stints in the batter's box that frame.
The inning had nearly everything someone might think of in an inning: a walk (Equale, Stephens, Cromer), hit batter (Witte), wild pitch (x4), passed ball (x2), double (Greene, Witte), single (Pellegrino), stolen base (Taigen), throwing error that scored a run (x1), and pinch runners (x3).
In the end, WashU closed out the game with a 1-2-3 top of the ninth for the win.
WashU 13, GAC 9
It looked like the Gusties were going to split the games through the first three and a half innings of the second game as GAC had a 7-0 lead. But three runs in each of the fourth and fifth innings, along with six in the seventh, saw the Bears secure the comeback for the Saturday sweep.
GAC opened the first with a walk, with the runner taking second on a failed pickoff attempt. After the next two batters struck out, a single up the middle scored the run, putting the Gusties ahead 1-0.
A single to start the third was followed by another failed pickoff attempt by the Bears. A groundout allowed the run to score from third. Two batters later, Joe Burns hit a solo home run for GAC over the left field fence, putting his team ahead 3-0 after three.
The Gusties increased their lead to seven in the top of the fourth after a leadoff double, followed by a single to right to put runners on second and third. Another single through the right side scored the leadoff double. A six-pitch walk loaded the bases before a 6-4-3 double play cut the number of runners on the bases in half while the runner on third scored to put GAC ahead 5-0. A single was followed by a triple, scoring the last two runs of the inning, as the Gusties led 7-0 after three and a half.
WashU began its comeback in the bottom of the inning with a two-out rally. Greene doubled to right and then traded places with Sitzer, who doubled to left center. The Bears loaded the bases after Pellegrino was hit by a pitch and Birke walked. A single by Stephens to left field scored both Pellegrino and Sitzer to cut the lead down to 7-3 after four innings.
The Bears trimmed the lead down by another three runs in the bottom of the fifth. Soong led off with a walk and reached second on an Equale groundout. One of two Gusties balks on the day put Soong on third for Witte, who singled to center, scoring Soong. Greene followed with a double to left that put Witte on third. After Sitzer struck out, Pellegrino hit a single through the left side on the second pitch he saw that allowed both Greene and Witte to score, cutting the lead down to just one run, 7-6.
The Gusties got one of the runs back in the top of the sixth, but once again, WashU used a big inning late to complete the comeback win. The Bears, down by two, scored six runs in the bottom of the seventh to take their first lead of the contest, 12-8.
Witte led off with a walk while Greene was hit by a pitch. With one out, Pellegrino singled through the left side to load the bases. Birke then walked in a run and Stephens was hit by a pitch to bring in another, tying the score at 8-8.
Another walked-in run and a fielding error by the first baseman scored three more, while a double down the left field line by Witte scored the sixth run of the inning for WashU.
Both teams scored a run in the eighth inning before the Bears got a foul out and two strikeouts to close out the game, 13-9.
Pellegrino led WashU in game one, going 2-for-4 at the plate with two RBIs and a run scored. Junior
Parker Guthrie earned the win in 1.0 innings of relief work while striking out two. Junior
Townsend Stevenson started the contest and went 6.0 innings, allowing just two runs while striking out eight.
In game two, Stephens went 2-for-4 at the plate with three RBIs and a run scored. Pellegrino and Witte each had a multi-RBI game for the Bears. Senior
Miles Quemuel-Labrador picked up his first win of the season in relief, going 2.0 innings with a strikeout. He is now tied for sixth all-time in pitching appearances with 48.
WashU and Gustavus Adolphus will round out the weekend with another doubleheader on Sunday, Mar. 22, also beginning at 11 a.m. at Kelly Field.
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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.
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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.
