WVU Tech sweeps Asbury in KIAC Baseball Games of the Week
WVU Tech sweeps Asbury in KIAC Baseball Games of the Week
EAST BANK, W. Va.— WVU Tech won all four games over Asbury University in the KIAC Baseball Games of the Week Friday and Monday in East Bank,W.Va. The Golden Bears improved to 14-6 KIAC, and Asbury dropped to 12-8 KIAC after the series.
Below is a recap of the series game by game from WVU Tech sports information.
Juniors Austin Southcott (4-3) and Jayson Sykora (4-1) earned the victories on the mound for the Gold and Blue in game one and two respectively. Southcott finished with six strike outs while Sykora was able to retire three batters via strikes.
Game One | WVU Tech 11, Asbury 4 | Box Score
WVU Tech picked up early runs to give them a 3-1 lead before they had a game-changing six-run inning in the bottom of the fourth. Senior Dylan Harvey started things off by reaching base on balls for the RBI that brought in junior Brady Groesbeck.
Junior Tanner Levine was the next to plate runs for Tech, driving a double to help score senior Doug Prather and freshman Roy Suzuki while boosting the lead to 6-1. The next three runs were credited to Levine, Harvey and seniorJosh Hudson, finishing the fourth inning with a 9-1 advantage.
Asbury began to answer back in their next at bat, posting three runs off of three hits and two Golden Bear errors before Tech's defense stopped the Eagles for the 11-4 win. The Gold and Blue held Asbury to just one hit in each of the final two innings.
Harvey and Suzuki both finished a perfect 3-for-3 at the plate, scoring two runs each. Harvey recorded two RBI while Suzuki drove in one run. The remaining RBI were earned by Levine (3) and Hudson (2).
Southcott, who is currently ranked No. 3 in the KIAC with an ERA of 2.82, scattered ten hits and two earned runs while walking just one batter. Sophomore Nick Brumfield finished the game on the hill, striking out one Eagle while giving up just one hit.
Game Two | WVU Tech 7, Asbury 3 | Box Score
The Golden Bears started quick in the night cap as well, giving themselves a 3-1 lead after three innings.
Asbury was able to shorten Tech's advantage to 3-2 by plating a run off a ground ball to Suzuki who got the out at first in the top of four. The Eagles were done scoring until a double to right center in the top of the seventh brought in their third and final score.
Tech posted three runs in the fifth before Hudson knocked his first home run this season in the sixth for Tech's seventh score in the victory. The three in the fifth were credited to freshman Anferny Ellis, Groesbeck and Prather.
Levine knocked a triple while Hudson had two hits including a home run, both finishing with two RBI and one run scored. Groesbeck batted 1.000 with three hits and one run scored while Harvey finished game two with a double, two runs scored, a stolen base and a RBI.
Sykora gave up four hits and two earned runs while walking three batters in his 5.0 innings on the mound. Fellow classmate Chris Davidson was in the game for six outs, striking out one Eagle while giving up three hits and one earned run.
Senior Josh Hudson had a standout showing in game one, pitching for the shutout win while driving in four runs off of two hits at the plate. Fellow classmate Kyle Sager earned the win on the mound in the night cap after 5.0 innings of work.
Tech's five hits in the last contest of the KIAC Baseball Games of the Week included three doubles, one each from Junior Trevor Lam, senior Doug Prather and freshman Roy Suzuki. Prather produced two hits towards a RBI and a run scored to lead the team.
Game Three | WVU Tech 8, Asbury 0 | Box Score
Senior Tommy Weaver's sacrifice fly to right field gave the Golden Bears their first score by driving in Lam in the bottom of the second.
Hudson picked up two of his four RBI in the third inning with a single to center field that brought in junior Brady Groesbeck and senior Dylan Harvey.
The fourth inning saw four Golden Bear scores with the runs batted in being credited to Suzuki, Harvey and Hudson (2).
Tech's final run came from a fifth inning home run from junior Sebastian Gomez Herrera over the left field fence. The knock marks Herrera's second long ball of the season.
The team totaled 11 hits including mult-hit games from Herrera (3), Hudson (2) and Harvey (2). Herrera also posted a double while Harvey recorded a stolen base.
Hudson (5-2) moved his strike out total to 23 in 2016 by retiring seven Eagles in his fifth win this season for the complete shutout victory. The South Charleston, West Virginia native gave up just three hits while walking two batters.
Game Four | WVU Tech 4, Asbury 1 | Box Score
Tech produced two runs in the second inning off a double from Prather which brought in freshman Anferny Ellis followed by a RBI from junior Marcus Rodriguez that plated Prather.
Asbury plated their lone run on the day off a fielder's choice that got the out at third, scoring Andrew Moran and crediting Alejandro Jivanjee with the RBI.
The final score of the day came in the fourth inning when Suzuki hit a double to left field that allowed senior John Baird to cross the plate.
Groesbeck, Prather and junior Heath Utterback recorded a stolen base each.
Sager (5-1) scattered five hits and one earned run while striking out two batters faced in the win.
The Golden Bears are currently No. 2 in the KIAC with a conference record of 14-6. Indiana University Southeast holds a KIAC record of 15-1 for the top spot while Point Park University's 11-5 conference showing gives the Pioneers third place.
Harvey leads the KIAC with 17 stolen bases while junior Tanner Levine's batting average of .394 garners him second place in the conference and junior Austin Southcott's ERA of 2.84 puts him at No. 3 overall in the KIAC.
WVU Tech will return to the field when they host Bluefield State College Wednesday in East Bank, West Virginia. The single nine-inning game is scheduled to begin at 3 p.m.