BELOIT, Wis. - The Beloit College baseball team faced a tough outing this afternoon, falling 2-8 and 0-2 to Lawrence University at The Ballpark at Strong Stadium onĀ
Game 1:Ā
A difficult second inning proved too much for the Buccaneers to overcome, despite moments of offensive spark later in the game.
Beloit struggled to get on the board early, while Lawrence capitalized decisively in the bottom of the second inning. An error by the Beloit defense opened the door, and Lawrence pushed across six runs, all unearned against starter Aiden Phipps (Simi Valley, Calif.). The big blow in the inning was a three-run homer by Lawrence's Freeman.
The Buccaneers finally broke through in the top of the sixth inning. First baseman Connor Vogel (Palmdale, Calif.) launched a solo home run to put Beloit on the scoreboard. Later in the frame, after Aiden Wood (Chandler, Ariz.) was hit by a pitch and Miles Souza (Carpinteria, Calif.) singled him to third, catcher Blake Nelson (Monument, CO.) delivered a sacrifice fly to score Wood, cutting the deficit to 6-2 at the time.
Despite the rally, Beloit's offense couldn't sustain the momentum. The team finished with five hits total. Second baseman Brody Bremer (Mesa, Ariz.) led the way, going 2-for-3. Right fielder Seth Brankey (Salem, Wis.) contributed a triple and drew two walks, while Vogel added his home run and a walk. However, the Buccaneers left nine runners stranded on base throughout the contest.
On the mound, Phipps battled through 6.2 innings. While charged with seven runs on seven hits, only one of those runs was earned due to the defensive miscue in the second. He walked three and struck out two. Nolan Wright (Carmel, Ind.) pitched the final 1.1 innings in relief, allowing one earned run on one hit and a balk, striking out one batter.
Game 2:Ā Despite a strong outing from starting pitcher Ben Schweit (Simi Valley, CA.), the Beloit College baseball team couldn't generate any offense, falling 2-0 in game 2.
SchweitĀ delivered a quality start for Beloit, tossing 6.0 innings and allowing just one unearned run on five hits. He effectively kept the Vikings hitters off balance, striking out nine while issuing only one walk. Unfortunately, a defensive miscue behind him led to Lawrence's first run.
The Buccaneers' offense struggled to solve Lawrence starterĀ SantanaĀ and reliever Johannes. Beloit managed only three hits over the nine innings ā singles by center fielder Jack Alport (Arlington Heights, Ill.), catcherĀ Nelson, and shortstop Nolan Tomsyck (Muskego, Wis). While Beloit drew two walks and had runners on base, they couldn't string together the key hits needed to score, leaving seven runners stranded.
Lawrence plated the game's first run in the bottom of the second inning. Santaga singled, stole second, and then came around to score whenĀ Zatkowski reached safely on an error by Beloit second baseman Bremer. This unearned run gave the Vikings a 1-0 lead.
Schweit settled in after that, putting up zeros until the seventh inning. Harvey Pena (Riverside, Calif.) took over pitching duties for Beloit in the bottom of the seventh. Lawrence added an insurance run in that frame when Zatkowski led off with a double and later scored on an RBI single by Hartlaub, making it 2-0. Pena finished the final two innings, allowing one earned run on two hits, walking two, and striking out three while also hitting one batter.
The offense had its best chance in the top of the seventh when Nelson and Tomsyck delivered back-to-back singles with one out, but a groundout and another ground ball ended the threat.
The Buccaneers will look to avoid the series sweep tomorrow when they host the Vikings. First pitch is set for 12 pm.Ā
