Charleston, W. Va. – It was a long awaited moment Sunday at GoMart Ballpark in Charleston, West Virginia, but the Wheeling University Baseball team (1-1, 0-0) took the field for the first time. After falling in the first game, the Cardinals would put together their first walk-off effort to earn a split over Pitt-Johnstown in the first two games of a four-game series. The Cardinals fell in the first game 9-2 and bounced back with a walk-off 6-5 win in game two, setting them up for a chance to win the weekend on Monday.
Game One: Pitt-Johnstown 9, Wheeling 2
With the Cardinals taking the field for the first time in 2025, they would do so behind their ace Kody McCarley in game one of the day. He would allow one base runner on a one-out single in the top of the first, but added a 1-2-3 inning in the second as he started the day strong. Pitt-Johnstown had a similarly strong start from Aidan Coleman, and after two innings of play the teams were knotted up at 0-0. The Mountain Cats would be the first on the board in the top of the third as a two-out single by Aiden Steinbugl and after three innings the score sat at 1-0. Coleman and McCarley would essentially go pitch-for-pitch with each other over the first four innings of the game, with the score remaining 1-0 in favor of Pitt-Johnstown.
It wasn't until the top of the fifth that Pitt-Johnstown would break things open, scoring six runs in the frame and extended their lead to 7-0. McCarley would make his exit during the inning, throwing 4.1 innings of work while allowing five runs, four earned, on six hit while walking one and striking out three. Mason Fenwick would come on in relief, allowing two unearned runs, before Lamont Aikins ended the inning, getting the final two outs while allowing a hit and striking out a batter. Zach Dellerman would come on to pitch the top of the sixth, and Pitt-Johnstown kept the bats going, adding two more runs to extend their lead to 9-0. The Cardinals needed a stopper as they got to the top of the seventh, and they would get just that from Jacob Dukate. Dukate came on and struck out two of the three batters he faced and the Cardinals stepped up for their final at-bats, trailing 9-0.
As they entered the bottom of the seventh, the Cardinals had been held to just one-hit by Coleman, and had had just two additional base runners in the top of the first on a walk and a hit-by-pitch. Coleman would strike out the first batter he faced, but back-to-back walks by Keaton Ference and Steven Merkel would put two on and one out. A wild pitch moved the runners to second and third, and it would be Spencer Craig that came through. He picked up his second hit of the day with a ringing double towards the right center field gap, bringing home Merkel and Ference and the Cardinals cut into the lead at 9-2. Nic Ancelet would add a single to put runners on the corners and Christian Boyles added a two-out walk to load the bases. However, that is where the run would end as a flyout to center brought the game to its final score of 9-2.
The Cardinals be led by Spencer Craig in the middle of the order, who picked up two of the teams three hits, going 2-3, while driving in both runs. He would get the first extra-base hit of the season for the Cardinals with his two-out double as he got his season started with a bang. The other Cardinal hit would come from Nic Ancelet, who finished 1-3 with a single on the day. Four other Cardinals would draw walks on the day, and Keaton Ference and Steven Merkel would score the two runs on the day for the Cardinals. After falling in game one, the Cardinals would look for a bounce back as they headed to game two.
Game Two: Wheeling 6, Pitt-Johnstown 5 (8 inn.)
Just as both teams got strong starting pitching in game one, the same was true for the second matchup of the day as Wheeling's Wes Landis battled Pitt-Johnstown's Jimmy Kunst. Both teams had their opportunities early, with Pitt-Johnstown getting three hits early while the Cardinals had a hit of their own, but the score remained 0-0 after two innings. Just as they did in game one, the Mountain Cats got on the board in the top of the third, this time on an RBI single by Justin Turcovski, and once again after three innings it was a 1-0 Pitt-Johnstown lead. The Mountain Cats added onto their lead in the top of the fifth, with Turcovski hitting a two-run home run and a wild pitch adding another run to make it a 4-0 Mountain Cat advantage.
Landis would exit the game in the start of that inning and allowed two runs, one earned, on five hits while walking four and striking out five. Tomoki Jutsukawa would make his Cardinal debut in relief, being tagged for two runs, before Ethan Wendell came on to get the final two outs of the inning. Wheeling would respond in the bottom half of the inning after Nic Ancelet drew a one-out walk. He would advance to second on a passed ball, and two batters later, Chris Sauer stepped up with a runner on and two outs. He would slap the ball up the middle and Ancelet would come around to score to make it a 4-1 game. Pitt-Johnstown got that run back on a sacrifice fly in the top of the sixth, but the Cardinals kicked their offense into high gear in the bottom half.
Nicholas Schultz started the inning with a walk and two batters later Steven Merkel drew a walk of his own. Both runners would advance on an error and Josh Rush was called on to pinch run for Merkel. After a pitching change, and with two outs on the board, Dylan Maltby would roll a ground ball to second base. The second baseman was unable to handle it and Schultz and Rush would both score to cut the deficit to 5-3. Ancelet would then step in and followed up with a two-out triple to score Maltby and the Cardinals trailed by one at 5-4 heading to the seventh. Dominic Parker-McDonald, who got the final out in the top of the sixth, would get a pair of strikeouts with a single sandwiched between in the seventh. Logan Stallbird would come on to get the final out and he did just tha, getting a pop-out to end the inning.
Down to their last at-bat, the first two Cardinals to step in in the bottom of the seventh would be retired, and Head Coach Ryan Lewicki made a call to the bench. Michael Norton stepped in and worked a 2-1 count, before launching a ball over the centerfield wall to send the game to extra innings. It was his first collegiate home run, and it gave the Cardinals new life heading to extra innings. Hunter Dyck and Brock Elliott would combine to pitch a scoreless top of the eighth and the Cardinals looked to win it in the bottom half. Merkel would start the inning by reaching on an error and Craig dropped down a sacrifice bunt to put the runner at second with one out. Dylan Matlby would draw a walk and a fielder's choice would load the bases as Nic Ancelet reached with one out. Christian Boyles would step in and hit a groundball to short, but the Mountain Cat error would be the Cardinal advantage as Rush, who pinch ran for Merkel, came around to score and the Cardinals won 6-5.
Leading the way for the Cardinals was Michael Norton, who despite having just one at-bat would put together the biggest at-bat of the game. He delivered the pinch-hit home run that sent the game to extra innings and gave the Cardinals new life. He was one of four Cardinals who finished with a hit on the day, with Nic Ancelet going 1-3 with a triple and an RBI, while Steven Merkel added another 1-3 effort. Brock Elliott would get his first win of the season, throwing the final 0.2 innings of work, and getting each of the two batters he faced out to set-up the walk-off winner.
The Wheeling University Baseball team returns to action on Monday, with games three and four of the four-game weekend set beginning at 1 PM. You can follow along with the action live by clicking HERE.
