Statesmen Complete Season Sweep of Yellowjackets on Senior Day
Oskaloosa–The William Penn baseball team scored with ease Saturday as it again swept Graceland in a Heart of America Athletic Conference doubleheader.
On Senior Day, WPU (24-18, 13-15 Heart) won by scores of 10-2 and 8-2 to sweep the four-game series.
The Statesmen wasted no time in jumping out on top against GU (13-33, 6-22 Heart), putting four on the board in the first. Justin Martinez (So., Bronx, N.Y., Sports Management) drew a bases-loaded walk (one of four walks in the inning for WPU), while the big hit came off the bat of Carson Hauk (So., Plainview, Texas, Business Management) in the form of a two-run single.
Alonzo Zuniga (Fr., Covina, Calif., Sociology and Psychology) doubled home a pair in the second frame, while Jameson Hart (Sr., Sarnia, Ontario, Sports Management) also recorded a run-scoring single for a 7-0 William Penn advantage.
A triple by Tim Jean (So., Libertyville, Ill., Public Accounting) plated another run in the third; the sophomore later came around on a wild pitch as WPU owned a 9-0 lead.
The offense was slowed for the remainder of the contest, though, with Martinez’s sixth-inning double the only other run-scoring play.
The bats were not the only things clicking on all cylinders. Starting pitcher Brian Thomas (So., Shingle Springs, Calif.) also found a groove early on and blazed through the Yellowjacket lineup. The sophomore was perfect entering the fourth inning, and still had a no-hitter going into the sixth. GU’s leadoff batter broke up the no-hitter and Thomas eventually lost the shutout bid, but he was spectacular in allowing just one run on one hit.
Thomas struck out eight with one walk in the victory.
Topping WPU’s 10 hits were two from Martinez, Hauk, and Tanner Bedier (Jr., Bondurant, Iowa, Industrial Technology). Hart and Franklin Aparicio (So., Panama City, Panama) each drew two free passes as well, while the trio of Aparicio, Bedier, and Hart also all touched home plate on two occasions.
The hosts pounced on Graceland in the early innings of the nightcap as well. Jean scored on a Zuniga single in the first, while Alex Fisher (Jr., Sydney, Australia, Biology) drove in Soren Graversen (Jr., Calgary, Alberta, Human Services) in the second. A sacrifice fly by Jean allowed Nathan Jessell (Fr., Napa, Calif., Sociology) to come home later in the frame for a quick 3-0 edge.
Fisher’s work was just beginning. In addition to several top-notch defensive plays in center field, he collected two more RBIs in the fourth, bringing in Jessell and Hauk with a double. He then scored as well on a Jean single.
Finally in the fifth inning, with Jessell on base, Fisher took a pitch and sent it over the right-field fence for his first home run of the season. One of the 10 seniors playing in their final game at Penn Field, Fisher finished 3-for-3 with five RBIs and two runs scored.
Overall, the Statesmen belted out 12 hits. Jessell matched Fisher with three base knocks (three runs scored as well), while Jean and Bedier contributed two hits and one walk each to complete the four-game series sweep.
Ty Harter (So., Galesburg, Ill.) followed Thomas’ gem with a standout performance of his own. The sophomore tossed six innings, permitting just two runs on four hits, while striking out five (one walk).
Next Up: William Penn travels to Cedar Rapids next Friday to face Mount Mercy in a Heart doubleheader beginning at 1 p.m.
