WASHINGTON, Pa. -- It might have taken an extra game Saturday afternoon but the Grove City College baseball team captured its first Presidents' Athletic Conference title since 2008 by earning an 8-1 win over Westminster in the championship game of the Presidents' Athletic Conference Championship Tournament, held at Ross Memorial Park.
Westminster downed Grove City in Saturday's opener, 5-2, to force the "if necessary" game. Grove City scored four times in the bottom of the first inning in Game Two, then added two more runs in the second inning to take control.
The win sends Grove City (31-11) to the NCAA Division III Championship Tournament as the conference's automatic qualifier. Grove City's 31 wins this year are the most in program history.
Sophomore pitcher Sam Bevin (Louisville, Ky./Wake County) earned the win after allowing no earned runs and and six hits in eight innings. Bevin, who made his first pitching appearance since March 29, struck out five men and walked one.
Bevin earned the tournament's Most Outstanding Player award after going 10 for 20 (.500) at the plate with five runs scored during the tournament, along with his pitching performance Saturday.
Senior right fielder Josh Minnich (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Cumberland Valley), another All-Tournament Team selection, gave Grove City a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first when he doubled in Bevin and junior center fielder Nick Sampson (Venetia, Pa./Peters Township). A groundout by freshman shortstop Sam Meredith (Canonsburg, Pa./Canon-McMillan) scored junior first baseman Colin Marinpetro (Imperial, Pa./West Allegheny) with the third run of the inning.
Minnich later scored on a sacrifice fly by senior second baseman Luke Vittone (Seven Fields, Pa./Eden Christian).
Bevin boosted the lead to 6-0 in the second inning with a two-run home run to right field. Senior catcher Sam DiStefano (Fairview, Pa./Fairview) scored on the blast, Bevin's seventh of the season.
Grove City added two runs in the seventh. DiStefano scored on a throwing error and Bevin later came in on Marinpetro's infield single.
Sophomore pitcher David Gallagher (Coraopolis, Pa./Montour) closed out the win with a perfect ninth inning of relief.
In Game One, Grove City trailed 3-0 but scored twice in the fifth inning. Freshman DH Kallen Durbin (Harmony, Pa./Seneca Valley) reached third on a sun-aided triple, then scored on Bevin's single. Bevin scored on a wild pitch later in the inning.
Bevin, Minnich and All-Tournament selection Sampson all had two hits in the opener.
Junior pitcher Kenny Lavrich (Franklin, Pa./Cranberry) allowed two earned runs in 5 2/3 innings. He struck out five and walked four, taking the setback. Freshman Dash Lanzilotta (Northfield, Ohio/Nordonia) pitched the final 2 1/3 innings and allowed one run. He struck out four men.
Senior pitcher David Leslie (Butler, Pa./Butler) and sophomore pitcher Bryce Trischler (Mars, Pa./Shady Side Academy) rounded out Grove City's All-Tournament picks. Leslie struck out 12 men in nine innings Thursday night as Grove City downed Allegheny, 3-1. Friday night, Trischler threw a 10-inning complete game as Grove City outlasted defending conference champion Washington & Jefferson, 4-1.
Grove City previously won conference titles in 2001, 2002 and 2008. The 2008 season marked the first year in which the conference owned an automatic berth in the NCAA Division III Tournament.
The 64-team NCAA Tournament field will be announced Monday. Grove City will play in a four-team, double-eliminational regional tournament next weekend.