Posted: Mar 08, 2015

Baseball Splits With Wimington

FORT MYERS, Fla. – The Elms College baseball squad registered their first victory of the season, splitting a non-conference doubleheader with Wilmington (Ohio) during the Gene Cusic Collegiate Classic at Terry Park Sunday afternoon.

Wilmington broke the scoreless tie in the top of the third as junior Clay Clever (Pleasant Plain, Ohio) laced a two-run single through the right side of the infield, staking the Fighting Quakers to a 2-0 lead. The Blazers pulled even in the bottom of the fifth as senior Brady Forrest (Hampden, Mass.) plated freshman Michael Bombard (Chicopee, Mass.) and sophomore Stephen Harrison (Southbury, Conn.) with a two-run single to left field, tying the game at 2-2.

The opener went to extra innings tied at 2-2. In the top of the eighth, Wilmington broke the tie as senior Roenick Whitney (Goshen, Ohio) launched a two-run home run over the left field fence, sending the Fighting Quakers to the 4-2 win.

Wilmington sophomore Samuel Cranor (Cincinnati, Ohio) earned the win in relief, while starter junior Corey Walker (Hillsboro, N.H.) went five innings, allowing two earned runs on two hits with seven strikeouts. Elms senior Sean Sinnott (0-1; Granby, Conn.) was solid in his season debut, surrendering four runs on 10 hits with six strikeouts in seven innings of work.

In the nightcap, the Fighting Quakers took a 1-0 lead in the first as freshman Jake Robinson (Westerville, Mich.) scored on a Blazers fielding error. Elms grabbed control in the top of the second with sophomore Jordan Zima (Berlin, Conn.) scoring on a balk to tie the game. The Blazers pulled ahead on an RBI single from junior R.J. Lyrenmann (Phoenix, Ariz.) followed by an RBI groundout from sophomore Cody Lemieux (Torrington, Conn.), taking a 3-1 advantage.

Wilmington regained control in the bottom of the frame with a four-run inning. Freshman Kyle Short (Trenton, Ohio) trimmed the Quakers deficit to 3-2 with an RBI single, and then Wilmington pulled even behind an RBI double from Walker. The Quakers regained the lead with a two-run single from Cleaver to capture a 5-3 lead.

Elms responded quickly as senior Geoff Frost (Ludlow, Mass.) and Zima delivered RBI doubles in the top of the third, knotting the contest at 5-5. Elms starter Lemieux and Wilmington junior Tyler Schrock (Waynesville, Ohio) buckled down, allowing five hits over the three-plus innings. In the top of the seventh, Frost and Zima knocked back-to-back singles, and then junior Nolan Medeiros (Taunton, Mass.) ripped the game-winning single, scoring Frost and sending Elms to the 6-5 win.

Lemieux (1-0) earned his first win of the season in a complete game effort, allowing five runs, four earned, on nine hits with three strikeouts. Cranor took the loss in relief, surrendering one run on three hits in an inning of work.

The Blazers move to 1-3 on the season, while Wilmington sits at 1-2 overall. Elms will look to remain in the win column with a single game against Monmouth (Ill.) Monday morning at 9:00 a.m. Wilmington faces Emerson in a doubleheader Monday morning.

ELMS BASEBALL