Avon, OH. – It was the start of Mountain East Conference (MEC) North Division play on Saturday as the Wheeling University Baseball team (17-11, 7-7) made the trip to Avon, Ohio to take on Notre Dame College. The Cardinals started the division slate with a split, falling in game one 1-0 before bouncing back with an 8-0 win in game two. It was a strong day all around for the Cardinals starting pitching as Kenny Jinks and Wes Landis ruled the mound throughout the day.

Game One: Notre Dame College 1, Wheeling 0

The first game of the afternoon was a classic pitchers duel as the Cardinals called upon Kenny Jinks while Notre Dame College sent Danny Brammer to the hill. Jinks would throw a complete-game effort, with the two teams combining for just seven hits on the day. The Cardinals would get the first hit of the day in the top of the first on a Kaleb Scull single and threatened with a runner in scoring position in the top of the second on a Thomas Kegerreis double. Wheeling got their third hit of the game in the top of the third courtesy of an Aidan Willard single, but each time the Cardinals would end up stranding the runners on base. Unfortunately for the offense, those were the only three hits of the day as Brammer settled in over the final four innings of work.

For the Cardinals, it was Jinks who stood tall on the mound and turned in his best start of the season. He retired the first six batters he faced over the first two innings, striking out four of the six batters he faced during that time. He allowed his only run of the game in the bottom of the third as Caden Gomes doubled home the lone run of the game to make it 1-0. That is where the score would stay for the rest of the night as Jinks would finish the complete game effort. He ended up throwing 6.0 innings allowing one run on three hits, while walking four and striking out 11 on the night. The Cardinals threatened to tie the game in the bottom of the seventh as Kaleb Scull started things with an infield single. They would get runners on first and second with two outs, but couldn't push the run across as they fell 1-0.

Kaleb Scull led the way with two hits on the day, finishing 2-3 and starting he rally late in the game. He got the first hit of the game in the first and added the single to start the seventh as the Cardinals made a comeback attempt. The lone extra base hit of the day for the Cardinals came from Thomas Kegerreis, who finished 1-2, while Aidan Willard went 1-3 to round out the day. The Cardinals would look to get one back as they headed into game two of the day.

Game Two: Wheeling 8, Notre Dame College 0

After not being able to push a run across in game one, the Cardinals offense got started early in game two. It would once again be started by Kaleb Scull, who reached on an error to bring up Braden Killens with one on and one out. Killens would deposit his eighth home run of the year over the right field wall as he made it a 2-0 Cardinal lead. It was early run support for starting pitcher Wes Landis, and ended up being more than enough for the right-hander. Landis would add the second complete game effort of the day for the Cardinals as he shutout the Falcons. He would allow just three hits over 7.0 innings of work while walking one and striking out three. It was Landis's first complete game of the season as he rounded out a strong day on the mound for the Cardinals.

As Landis was dealing, the offense kept things going in the top of the second. Spencer Craig would walk to start the inning and Dylan Maltby followed with a single to put two on and nobody out. Both runners would move to scoring position on a passed ball and Nic Ancelet would pick up both runners with a single as the Cardinals extended their lead to 4-0. Ancelet would steal second and with two outs Killens once again stepped up with runners in scoring position and two outs. He came through once again with a single and Ancelet scored as the Cardinals went up 5-0. Killens would also drive in the next run in the top of the fourth after singling and an error brought home the run as the Cardinals led 6-0 after four innings of play.

The Cardinals would push across their final two runs in the final three innings, with the first coming in the top of the fifth. Scott Kondroik would reach on a one-out single and Spencer Craig doubled to put a pair of runners in scoring position. Maltby would be hit by a pitch to load the bases and a Fielder's Choice would bring home the run to make it a 7-0 Cardinal advantage. The final run would come across in the final inning as Spencer Craig drew a one-out walk. He advanced to second on a wild pitch and a ground out moved the runner to third. Ancelet would come through with the final RBI of the day as he brought home Craig with a single to make it an 8-0 game. Landis would finish things out with a one-two-three bottom of the seventh as the Cardinals got their 17th win of the season.

It was a big day at the plate for Braden Killens, who finished 4-5 with a home run , a run scored, and three RBI. Killens hit his team leading eighth home run of the season in the game and sits second in the conference in home runs this season. Nic Ancelet would also have a strong showing for the Cardinals, finishing 2-4 with a team high four RBI on the day. Killens and Ancelet drove in all but one of their team's runs with the final RBI coming courtesy of an error. The Cardinal offense totaled 10 hits on the day as they earned the split and look to get the series win on Sunday.

Games three and four of this four game series are scheduled for Sunday, April 7th, with first pitch at 1 PM. You can watch the game live by clicking HERE or follow along with Live Stats by clicking HERE.