MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. – Less than 18 hours after landing in Myrtle Beach for spring break the Geneva College baseball team accrued their first victory of the trip, defeating Valley Forge 15-9. After a rough first inning, the Golden Tornadoes got things under control, and their bats paved the way for Geneva's third straight victory, pushing the men to 3-1 on the young season. The Patriots, who wrapped up their time in South Carolina with the loss, fall to 3-8.
On a beautiful early spring day at the nearby Minor League field Pelican Stadium, it was Valley Forge who struck first, breaking through for four runs in the top of the first inning. Geneva responded immediately, however. Senior
Zack Sackett led off the bottom of the inning with a booming double, and after a walk and a hit batsmen senior
Zach Lemansky drove in two runs with a double of his own.
Senior
Connor O'Brien and junior
Aaron Babu also collected RBIs in the inning, and the score was 4-4 after one.
Valley Forge answered back with two more runs in the top of the second, and it wasn't until the third frame that Geneva threw a counterpunch. Sophomore
Michael Twigg launched a home run to left-center field to begin the frame, and after an RBI-double by senior
Eric Gonzalez tied the score, Sackett gave Geneva the lead with an RBI off a sacrifice fly ball. With men on second and third, junior
Kirk Bearjar recorded two more RBIs on a single, and Geneva ended the third inning with a 9-6 advantage.
Solid pitching from junior
Ryan Conover continued to keep Valley Forge off the board through the top of the fourth, and the GTs struck again in the bottom of the frame. Twigg scored from third base on a passed ball, and Gonzalez, Sackett, and Bearjar all drove in runs to give Geneva a decisive 13-6 lead halfway through the game.
Valley Forge managed one run in the top of the fifth after junior
Jake McFarland entered the game, but the right-hander kept the Patriots off the board for the next two innings to maintain the gap between the two teams. UVF scored two runs in the top of the eighth inning, but Geneva loaded up the bases in the bottom half and forced two walks to push the difference back up to six runs. That's where the score remained through the ninth inning, and the men took the victory 15-9.
Bearjar finished the game 2-for-3 with a team-leading three RBIs, and Gonzalez put together an impressive stat line as well, going 3-for-4 with a double and two RBIs. Conover got the win in relief, pitching 3.0 innings and allowing just one earned run and two runs total. McFarland pitched four good innings as well, allowing three runs, one earned, on three hits, striking out two.
The GTs have now scored 58 runs through their first four games of the season, and they will look to keep the bats hot as they continue play in Myrtle Beach next week. Their next game is scheduled for Monday, March 10
th, when they take on Hilbert at 3:00 p.m.
Through purposeful learning in a community reflecting the full spectrum of God's kingdom, a Geneva College experience inspires students to discover a faith-life calling in service to God and neighbor. Offering 195+ traditional undergraduate majors and programs, fully online Adult Degree Programs and high-demand graduate degrees, Geneva's programs are recognized for their high quality and affordability. Geneva was founded and is governed by the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America (RPCNA) and is a founding member of both the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities (CCCU) and the International Association for Christian Education (IACE).
