April 27, 2019

#20 R-MC Baseball Sweeps W&L to Claim ODAC Regular Season Title

More news about: Randolph-Macon

Batting

Washington and Lee
2B: Bryce Burnette; Zach Loewenberg; Matt Whitely
3B: Matthew Jones
HR: none
Randolph-Macon
2B: Jarrett Mustain
3B: none
HR: Matthew Blaise; Mike Nickles
full stats

ASHLAND, Va. - Senior right-hander Nick Roth (Henrico, Va./Benedictine) fanned 11 in 7.0 innings in the opener on Senior Day, and junior outfielder Shawn Nickles (Stafford, Va./Colonial Forge) homered twice and knocked in six in the nightcap as 20th-ranked Randolph-Macon baseball team swept an ODAC doubleheader from Washington and Lee on Saturday afternoon to clinched the ODAC regular season title for the second straight season.

The Basics

Scores: Game 1: Randolph-Macon 5, Washington and Lee 3

Game 2: Randolph-Macon 14, Washington and Lee 1

Location/Venue: Ashland, Va./Hugh Stephens Field at Estes Park

Records: R-MC 22-8-1, 16-5-1 ODAC; W&L 14-20, 8-14 ODAC

How It Happened

Game 1

  • Roth allowed eight hits and three runs with no walks. He raised his record to 8-0 this season and 24-2 for his career. Roth is the program's career wins leader.
  • After Roth set the Generals down in order in the top of the first, junior third baseman Mike Nickles (Stafford, Va./Colonial Forge) belted a two-out homer to right, his sixth of the season, to give the Yellow Jackets a 1-0 lead.
  • After W&L tied it in the fourth, R-MC answered in the fifth. Senior second baseman Jarrett Mustain (Chesapeake, Va./Hickory) had a one-out double and he scored on a homer to right by senior outfielder Matthew Blaise (Clifton, Va./Centreville), his second of the season, as the Yellow Jackets took a 3-1 lead.
  • The Generals would tie it in the sixth before R-MC went ahead for good in the seventh. Mike Nickles drew a leadoff walk and went to second on a base hit by junior catcher Reece Yeargain (Chester, Va./Benedictine). Shawn Nickles singled to left to plate his brother Mike, giving the home team a 4-3 edge. A sacrifice fly by junior first baseman Cole Grinde (Woodford, Va./Caroline) brought home Yeargain as the Yellow Jackets went up 5-3.
  • Senior right-hander Daniel Lachance (Clifton, Va./Centreville) tossed a hitless, scoreless eighth for R-MC. Sophomore lefty Zack Radcliffe (Bel Air, Md./Bel Air) fanned two in a scoreless ninth to record his first collegiate save.

By The Numbers - Game 1

  • Mike Nickles reached base five times, going 2 for 2 with a single, a homer, three walks and two runs.
  • Shawn Nickles went 1 for 3 with two walks and one RBI.

Game 2

  • R-MC start the scoring in the second in Game 2. Sophomore catcher Jacob Selden (Lynchburg, Va./E.C. Glass) walked with two away and scored on a double by Grinde to give the Yellow Jackets a 1-0 edge.
  • The Yellow Jacket offense exploded in the fourth. Shawn Nickles belted a grand slam to make it 5-0. Selden singled and scored on a base hit by Mustain. Grinde had a base hit and came home on an error. Mustain scored on a sacrifice fly by junior outfielder Ryan Duphorn (Erial, N.J./Paul VI) to give the home team an 8-0 advantage.
  • After W&L had a solo homer in the top of the fifth, Shawn Nickles crushed a two-run homer to right, his seventh of the season, to give R-MC a 10-1 lead.
  • Blaise had a two-run single to highlight a four-run eighth as the Yellow Jackets posted the 14-1 win.
  • Junior right-hander Michael Zubovich (Chantilly, Va./Freedom) allowed six hits and one run in 6.0 innings with two walks and seven strikeouts to earn the win and raise his record to 7-0.

By The Numbers - Game 2

  • Three seniors tossed scoreless innings to finish the game. Patrick Solomita (Chesterfield, Va./Manchester) had a hit and a strikeout in the seventh. Tommy Barron (Chester, Va./Thomas Dale) gave up one hit and fanned one in the eighth. Jack Maccagnan (Chesapeake, Va./Greenbriar Christian) worked the ninth with two hits and one punchout.
  • Blaise went 2 for 4 with a walk, a double, two runs and two RBI.
  • Senior first baseman Ryan Doggett (Richmond, Va./The Steward School) was hit by a pitch and scored in the eighth.

Up Next

  • Randolph-Macon will conclude the regular season on Tuesday, April 30, hosting nationally-ranked Christopher Newport at 3:30 p.m. on Hugh Stephens Field at Estes Park. The Yellow Jackets will host a best-of-three series for the first round of the ODAC Tournament next weekend. Dates, times and opponent will be announced on Sunday.