FORT PIERCE (FL) – The Delaware Valley University baseball team moved to 4-0 on the young season with a pair of victories over Bethany College on Sunday. The Aggies won the first game, 3-0 and the second, 5-2 in eight innings.
In the closer, DelVal entered the bottom of the seventh with a 2-1 lead. The Bison (2-2) rallied to tie the game and force extra innings. Shortstop Zack Miller and pinch hitter Jacob Stemmerich hit back-to-back one-out singles. After a fly out, left fielder Zach Schlotter singled to left center, scoring Miller for the tying run.
Sophomore Steve Smith pinch hit to lead off the eighth and had a base hit up the middle for the Aggies. Sophomore shortstop Kevin Crill sacrificed him to second and a ground out moved Smith to third. Bethany intentionally walked junior center fielder Kyle Wenger to get to senior designated hitter Matt Dewald. Dewald crushed the first pitch he saw over the right field fence to give DelVal the 5-2 advantage. The Bison got two men on in the bottom half but failed to score.
Dewald drove in the first two runs for the Aggies as well with a first-inning single that brought home freshman second baseman Josh Morgan and Wenger. Bethany got on the board in the sixth with a RBI single by first baseman Matt Shaffer.
Junior righty Trevor Dalton received the win (1-0) in relief. He pitched the final 1.2 innings and did not allow a run on two hits. Starter Ben Lippincott went 6.1, surrendering two runs on eight hits. Hunter Kashke took the loss (0-1). Bethany starter Nick Gross hurled seven frames, giving up two unearned runs on five hits. He struck out five.
Dewald finished two-for-four with the homer, five RBI and a run scored. Sophomore outfielder Sammy Amos had two hits in three at-bats.
In game one, junior right-hander Chris Kelly tossed a complete-game shutout in his first outing since March 10, 2014. He missed the rest of that season and all of 2015 with an injury. Kelly allowed just two hits and struck out eight.
The Aggies tallied two runs in the opening frame. Wenger plated Crill with a groundout and Amos singled to left center to score Lippincott. Junior right fielder Nate Cummings had a sacrifice fly in the fourth that brought home Amos.
The Bison's best chance at runs came in the top of the fourth when they had the bases loaded with two outs. Kelly induced a ground out to get out of the jam.
Lippincott went two-for-three at the plate. Ryan Bisi was saddled with the loss (0-1) for Bethany, as he went six innings and surrendered three runs, two earned, on six hits.
DelVal plays a single game against Hilbert College on Monday, March 7 (9:30 a.m.).