Washington, PA. – The Wheeling University Baseball team (9-7, 0-4) continued their Mountain East Conference (MEC) opening weekend from Wild Things Park on Sunday as they hosted West Virginia State in doubleheader action. The Cardinals offense showed a spark early, but was held off the board over the final 12 innings of the day as they were swept by the Yellow Jackets. The four Cardinal runs came in the first two innings of game one, as they fell 10-4 and followed with a 10-0 loss in game two to round out the day.
Game One: West Virginia State 10, Wheeling 4
After dropping a pair of heart breakers on Saturday, Wheeling was looking to come out swinging as they opened their second MEC doubleheader of the weekend. West Virginia State would take the lead early with a pair of runs in the top of the first, but Wheeling was quick to respond. After the Cardinals half of the first started with a ground out, Christian Boyles would double to give Wheeling a runner in scoring position with one out. Braden Killens would then single to move runners to the corners with one out for Designate Hitter Thomas Kegerreis. Kegerreis would come through with an RBI single to score Boyles and make it a 2-1 game. A single by Spencer Craig would load the bases and Scott Kondroik would move the runners station to station with an RBI single that tied things at 2-2 after one.
Wheeling would take the lead in the very next inning as Sammy Kondroik got things started with a hit-by-pitch. Two batters later, Christian Boyles would draw a walk, giving Braden Killens a chance with two on and one out. He would pick up his first RBI of the day with a single that scored Kondroik and making it a 3-2 Wheeling lead. With runners on the corners and one out, Kegerreis would drive in his second run of the day, lifting a sacrifice fly to score Boyles and put the Cardinals up 4-2 after two innings. With the lead on his side, starter Kody McCarley would go out and throw a scoreless third to keep the score at 4-2 in favor of the Cardinals. However, West Virginia State would get their offense going in the top of the fourth, scoring seven runs as they turned a 4-2 Cardinal lead into a 9-4 West Virginia State advantage by the bottom of the fourth.
McCarley would end his day after that fourth inning, giving up nine runs, seven earned, on eight hits while walking three and striking out three. The Cardinal bullpen would take over the rest of the game, with Hunter Dyck giving up one run on three hits while striking out two in the fifth as the score moved to 10-4 in favor of the Yellow Jackets. The Cardinals needed a stopper and got just that from Dominic Parker-McDonald over the final two innings. He would throw the final two innings of the game, not allowing a hit while striking out two batters. The Cardinals would threaten in the top of the sixth, getting a runner to scoring position thanks to a stolen base from Nic Ancelet, but they couldn't push across a run as they fell 10-4.
Leading the way for the Cardinals in game one was Thomas Kegerreis, who finished 1-3 with a pair of RBI on the day. He would account for half of the team's offense on the day, and came through in a pair of big situations. Braden Killens would add a three hit day, finishing 3-4 with an RBI while Scott Kondroik added a 1-4 day with an RBI of his own to round things out The Cardinals looked to salvage a game from the weekend as they headed into game two.
Game Two: West Virginia State 10, Wheeling 0
In game two of the day, both starting pitchers had their best stuff working on the mound. West Virginia State would throw Chris Morris, who was strong throughout the day, throwing the complete game effort. Kenny Jinks took the mound for the Cardinals and, despite his final line, pitched strong throughout the day. He would end up loading the bases with one out in the first, but was able to work out of it with a strikeout and a groundout that kept it a scoreless game. He allowed his first run in the top of the second and his second run in the top of the third, but each time was able to work his way out of trouble. In the fourth, with runners at first and second with one out, Jinks rolled a big 5-4-3 double play to end the inning and keep the deficit at 2-0 heading into the bottom of the fourth.
He would get tagged for two more runs in the top of the fifth but came back strong retiring the first two men he faced in the sixth before giving way to the bullpen. Jinks would finish throwing 5.2 innings of work, allowing four runs on nine hits, while walking two and striking out four. Up until that point, the Cardinals had two hits courtesy of Scott Kondroik and Nic Ancelet and they were looking to get back in the hit column. With two outs, Head Coach Ryan Lewicki would call on Dylan Maltby to pinch hit and he came through with a two-out double to get a runner in scoring position. However, the inning would end with the runner remaining in scoring position and the Cardinals would go 1-2-3 in the seventh inning to end the day as Wheeling fell 10-0.
Maltby would lead the Cardinals on the day, getting a hit in his only at-bat as he pinch hit in the sixth inning. The other two Cardinal hits came from Scott Kondroik and Nic Ancelet to round out the day. Sebastian Khan would follow Jinks and allowed four unearned runs over his 1.0 inning of work and Noah Zenkewich would allow two more unearned runs. Jagger Iovenelli would get the final out of the game with a strikeout.
The Wheeling University Baseball team returns to action on Wednesday, March 20th, when they host Ohio Dominican with first pitch at 3 PM.
