FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. The Methodist baseball team picked up two wins over Mary Baldwin on Saturday. The Monarchs swiftly beat the Fighting Squirrels 16-2 in game one before squeezing out a 9-8 victory in game two.
THE ESSENTIALS
Final results: Methodist def. Mary Baldwin, 16-2; Methodist def. Mary Baldwin, 16-2
Records: Methodist 19-5 (5-2 USA South), Mary Baldwin 4-19 (0-9)
Location: John Moxie Stadium; Staunton, Va.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- The first runs of game one came at the hands of Rob Wilkerson, who smashed a two-run homer in the third at-bat of the game. Methodist scored two more in the inning to take a 4-0 lead.
- Hunter Hollman recorded a homerun in the top of the third. After the Monarchs tacked on two more runs in the fourth, Justin Blunt joined the homerun party with a solo shot of his own in the fifth. Jackson Deal doubled to bring home another run in the frame, giving Methodist a 10-0 advantage.
- A homer for the Fighting Squirrels made it a nine-run ballgame, which Caleb Rogers turned into an 11-run game with a two-run dinger. The Monarchs brought home two more runs before Wilkerson hit a two-run blast – his second homer of the contest and the fifth for the team. Mary Baldwin scored one more in the sixth, but Methodist's 14-run lead was enough to call for the conference's 12-run mercy rule after seven innings.
- Methodist garnered a four-run lead in the second game, but gave up a six spot – six runs on six hits – to the Fighting Squirrels in the bottom of the fifth. Two more runs in the bottom of the sixth gave Mary Baldwin an 8-4 lead.
- The Monarchs chipped away at Mary Baldwin's lead. In the seventh, Charles Jordan's sacrifice fly brought home one run. In the eighth, Jacob Austin batted in a run and another scored on a throwing error by the Fighting Squirrels. In the ninth, Rogers and Blunt recorded an RBI each to lift Methodist ahead by one run.
- With one out and runners on first and second, Chase Carroll took the mound for the Monarchs, forcing the final two Mary Baldwin batters to ground out.
STAT FACTS
- The Monarchs recorded 27 hits on the day – 16 in game one and 11 in game two.
- The 14-run win is Methodist's largest margin of victory this season.
- Stancil Bowles posted the best average among Methodist players who played in both games, finishing 4-for-8 at the plate with four runs scored and one walk.
UP NEXT
Methodist plays one more game against Mary Baldwin on Sunday at 12 p.m. in Staunton, Virginia.