FORT MYERS, Fla. – Baseball came away with a hard-earned doubleheader split with Skidmore College on Saturday afternoon, battling their way to an 8-6 victory in game two after dropping the first game 7-0. It was the final day of the GTs' spring break trip to Fort Myers, and they finish their time down south at 8-4 overall, ready to start Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) play next week.
The first game went downhill right from the outset. Despite recording two quick outs early in the bottom of the first, a Geneva error allowed the frame to continue, and the Thoroughbreds made the men pay by putting up six runs before the end of the inning. They scored once more in the second frame, but after that the Golden Tornadoes' pitching stood firm. Skidmore went the rest of the way without a run but won 7-0.
Junior
Cayden Cribbs pitched well for Geneva in relief, tossing 3.0 scoreless innings and allowing just two hits. Freshman
Matthew Kee was the GTs' top hitter in game one, going 2-for-3 at the plate.
Junior
Dylan Rowe got the start for Geneva in game two and pitched admirably, tossing a no-hitter through the first four innings. Skidmore did score once during that span after a player reached base on a hit-by-pitch and managed to get all the way around the horn without the Thoroughbreds recording a hit. Outside of that lone hiccup, the Golden Tornadoes' defense was excellent through four.
The offense finally struck in the bottom of the fourth inning. Juniors
Jason Triscila and
Hank Fedullo started off the frame with back-to-back singles, and then sophomore
Colin McCrone lined a base hit into left-centerfield to plate Triscila. Fedullo came in to score on a wild pitch during the next at-bat, and then a seeing-eye single from freshman
Luke Troxell pushed across McCrone, giving Geneva a 3-1 lead.
Skidmore absorbed Geneva's strike and came right back with three runs in the top of the fifth, sneaking in front 4-3. An RBI-single from Fedullo in the bottom half of the inning tied things back up, however, and then the GTs took the lead for good after sophomore
Simon Wehr blasted a three-run home run over the right field fence.
The Thoroughbreds plated two runs in the sixth inning to pull within one run, but the men got an insurance run when senior
Kirk Bearjar scored Kee from home via a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the frame. Senior
Eric Keaton came in to pitch the ninth for Geneva, and he needed just five pitches to finish the game, sealing Geneva's 8-6 victory and sending Skidmore to just its second loss of the season.
Wehr went 2-for-3 at the plate for the men, recording three RBIs on his home run. Fedullo was 2-for-2 with an RBI, while Kee, Triscila, and McCrone all notched multiple hits. After his strong start, Rowe earned the victory, while Keaton recorded his first save of the season.
The men will now return to Pennsylvania to prepare for PAC play, which begins next Saturday, March 21, with a home doubleheader against Washington and Jefferson. There is currently a non-conference home doubleheader against Stevenson scheduled before that on Wednesday, March 18, but it will likely be canceled due to weather.
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).
