Pella, Iowa, April 9, 2011 – The Washington University in St. Louis baseball team traveled to Pella, Iowa, on Saturday afternoon and split a doubleheader with Central College.
The Bears had their eight-game winning streak grind to a halt with a 7-2 loss in game one against the Dutch but bounced back to capture the second game 7-0.
In the fist game Central (13-9) scored four runs in the third and tacked on three more in the fourth to take a commanding 7-0 lead. Designated hitter Caleb Rangel registered the big base hit for the Dutch in the third, clearing the bases with a three-RBI triple to right field.
The Bears finally got their offense on track in the sixth when senior Matt Skinner soared a two-run homer to right center field to cut the WUSTL deficit to 7-2. However, Central starter Ryan Goetzinger retired the final four batters he faced to preserve the complete game win.
Goetzinger gave up just six hits over seven innings with seven strikeouts and no walks to improve to 4-1 on the year. Sophomore Taylor Berman started game one on the hill for the Bears, giving up seven earned runs over four innings with a pair of strikeouts. Sophomore Seth Bensussen quieted the Central bats with two innings of scoreless relief.
The second game featured a role reversal with Washington University boasting a dominant pitching performance and excellent offensive execution. Sophomore Stephen Bonser threw a complete-game gem in his game-two victory.
Improving to 4-0 on the year, Bonser scattered seven hits over seven innings with four strikeouts, tossing his third complete-game and second shutout victory of the season.
Senior Joe Noon carried the big bat for Washington University going 2-for-2 with four RBIs in the win. The Bears scored twice in the second inning, thanks to an RBI double from senior Matt Bayer and a sacrifice fly from Noon.
Noon stretched the WUSTL lead to 5-0 in the fourth, slamming a two-run home run to deep right field, his first long ball of the year. He registered his fourth RBI with a hard hit double to right-center field in the fifth, scoring Bayer once again.
Washington U. (20-12) will return to action for a double header at Coe College on Sunday, April 10, in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, starting at 11 a.m.
Bear Notebook: Allowing no earned runs on Saturday, Bonser lowered is earned run average to 2.76 … Washington University stole five bases on Saturday, increasing its season tally to 86 and needing just six more to break the school single-season record.