FERRUM, Va. - Junior Rick Spiers (South Chesterfield, Va./Matoaca) had four hits and drove in four, while sophomore Grant Huckestein (Manassas, Va./Woodbridge) went 3 for 5 with two runs and two RBI as the 12th-ranked Randolph-Macon baseball team posted a 13-5 victory at Ferrum on Tuesday evening.
The Yellow Jackets improved to 16-5, while the Panthers fell to 15-12.
R-MC started the scoring in the top of the first. Freshman Ryan Duphorn (Erial, N.J./Paul VI) had a leadoff single, moved to third on a base hit by sophomore Jeff Butler (Chesapeake, Va./Western Branch) and scored on a bunt single by Spiers to give the visitors a 1-0 lead.
After Ferrum tallied two in the first and one in the second, the Yellow Jackets exploded for five in the fourth. Huckestein had a leadoff double and scored when sophomore Ryan Hickman (Ruther Glen, Va./Caroline) reached on an error to make it 3-2. Duphorn doubled home Hickman to level the score at 3-3. Spiers added an RBI double to put the visitors ahead for good at 4-3. Butler, who had singled, scored on a passed ball and Spiers came home on a wild pitch as the Yellow Jackets took a 6-3 advantage.
Huckestein hammered a leadoff triple in the fifth and scored on a wild pitch to give R-MC a 7-3 lead.
After the Panthers put up one in the fifth, the Yellow Jackets responded in the top of the sixth. Butler singled and scored, Huckestein had a two-run single and Hickman added a sacrifice fly as R-MC took an 11-4 lead. Spiers added a two-run double in the seventh as the advantage grew to 13-4. Ferrum added a run in the bottom of the seventh to make the final 13-5.
Spiers went 4 for 6 with two doubles, one run and four RBI. Huckestein was a homer short of the cycle with one double, one triple, two runs and two RBI. Butler had three hits and three runs, while Duphorn was 2 for 5 with a double, three runs and one RBI.
Sophomore Jake Ottinger (Glen Allen, Va./Benedictine) picked up the win, pitching a hitless sixth with one walk and two strikeouts to give him a 1-0 record.
Randolph-Macon returns to ODAC action on Thursday, March 30 for a 4 p.m. contest at Hampden-Sydney.