Eagles get strong pitching, timely hitting in doubleheader sweep
The Winthrop baseball team got strong pitching and timely hitting to sweep a Saturday doubleheader against Canisius as the Eagles won 2-1 and 3-1 at The Winthrop Ballpark.
The two wins improves Winthrop’s record to 7-8 while Canisius is now 10-5.
In the first game of the twin bill, sophomore second baseman Brandon Fite stroked a line drive walk-off single to right centerfield to score Grant English with the winning run in the bottom of the ninth. In the nightcap, sophomore right-hander Nate Pawelczyk hurled eight innings of one-run, six-hit baseball to earn the win, and junior shortstop Mitch Spires drove home two runs with a double in the fourth inning.
In the opener, senior right-hander Reece Green pitched a strong game, but did not figure in the decision. He held went 7.2 innings and left with the game tied at 1-1. He struck out five and walked two, while allowing one run on six hits. Freshman Coltan Rendon came on in relief in the eighth and retired all four batters he faced to earn his first collegiate victory and improve his record to 1-2.
The Golden Griffins scored their run in the second after Joseph Preziouso was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning and came around to score following a single and two infield groundouts. The Eagles tied the game in the sixth when Matthew Mulkey drew a lead-off walk, was sacrificed to second by Fite, moved to third on a wild pitch, and scored on a bunt by Babe Thomas.
The Eagles scored the winning run in the ninth as English reached on a one-out single, was sacrificed to second by pinch-hitter Jake Sullivan, moved to third on a deep fly ball by Tyler Musselwhite and then scored on Fite’s two-out line drive single.
In the second game, Winthrop scored twice in the fourth inning as Fite and Anthony Paulsen collected back-to-back singles to open the frame. They advanced a base on a sac bunt by Thomas and scored on Spires’ deep drive that one-hopped the left centerfield wall.
Canisius got one of the runs back in the sixth after Tim Kensinger led off with a triple to right centerfield and scored on a squeeze bunt by Liam Wilson. The Eagles responded with a single run in the seventh inning when Spires drew a walk to lead things off and was sacrificed to second by Hunter Lipscomb. He stole third and then scored on a RBI single by English.
The Golden Griffins threatened in the top of the ninth as they got their first two batters on base with singles by Jake Lumley and Ryan Stekl, but Winthrop head coach Tom Riginos brought in left hander Riley Arnone to get the first out on a sacrifice bunt by Christ Conley, and then went to the bullpen again to bring in Dalton Whitaker who fanned the two hitters he faced to earn his first collegiate save.
Winthrop plays at 6 p.m. Tuesday against The Citadel at Riley Park in Charleston.
Friday’s game
Winthrop (5-8) was led at the plate by sophomore Grant English, who went 3 for 4 with one RBI, junior Wesley Williams had a two-RBI double, and junior Mitch Spires extended his hitting streak to five games as he went 2 for 4 with one double and a single.
Eagle southpaw Thad Harris (0-3) suffered the loss as he went two innings, allowed five runs on four hits and walked three. Canisius’ Andrew Sipowicz (1-0) earned the win as he pitched five innings, allowed one run on three hits and struck out eight.
Winthrop took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first when Spires hit a double and scored on a single by senior Babe Thomas.
Canisius got the board in the top of the second with three runs with the help of two hit batters, an error, a walk, and two singles. The Golden Griffins extended the lead to 9-1 as they batted around in the third inning, scoring six runs on five singles and a fielding error.
The Eagles cut the deficit to five runs with a three-run fourth inning. Following back-to-back singles, Williams drove home two runs with a double. Williams advanced to third on a wild pitch and scored the third run of the inning on a groundout. Winthrop added one more in the eighth on three hits. Spires scored Winthrop’s final run on a two-out single by English.
This story was originally published March 12, 2017 at 8:32 AM with the headline "Eagles get strong pitching, timely hitting in doubleheader sweep."