Memphis, Tenn., Feb. 23, 2013 – Senior pitcher Stephen Bonser pitched a complete-game two-hitter and junior outfielder Kyle Billig drove in the game-winning run as the Washington University in St. Louis baseball team earned a 3-2 win in 10 innings over No. 10-ranked Webster University. The Bears dropped their second game of the day, falling 10-1 against Rhodes College Saturday afternoon in Memphis.
Washington U. (1-2) is scheduled to return to action with its first home game of the season, Wednesday, Feb. 27 against Fontbonne University. First pitch is scheduled for 3 p.m. at Kelly Field.
Washington U. 3, #10 Webster 2 – 10 innings
With the score tied 2-2 after nine innings, Washington U. took the lead in the top of the 10th inning. Freshman outfielder Max Golembo hit a one-out triple to right field. After sophomore second baseman Noah Doppelt drew a walk, Billig recorded his third single of the game to score Golembo and give the Bears the 3-2 lead. Washington U. had a chance to add to the lead, with the bases loaded later in the inning, but a strikeout ended the threat. In the bottom of the inning, Bonser sealed the win for the Bears with a strikeout, groundout and flyout to end the game.
Webster put runners on the corners with a pair of one-out singles in the bottom of the third inning, and a sacrifice fly gave the Gorloks a 1-0 lead in the game. Golembo led off the top of the fifth for the Bears with a single to center field and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Doppelt. Billig followed with an RBI single to center field to score Golembo. Billig advanced to second on the throw, before stealing third. After sophomore third baseman Chris Lowery drew a four-pitch walk, sophomore first baseman Zack Kessinger singled to right field to drive in Billig and give Washington U. a 2-1 lead. In the bottom of the inning, Webster got its first two batters on base with a hit by pitch and a walk. The leadoff batter came around to score on a sacrifice fly to tie the score at 2-2 heading to the sixth inning. The teams remained knotted at 2-2 until the 10th inning.
Bonser (1-0) made the most of his first start in 2013, throwing the 12th complete game of his career. He allowed just two hits in 10 innings, while recording five strikeouts. Billig (3-for-6, 2 RBI, run) and Golembo (3-for-4, 2 runs) led the way offensively for the Bears, who recorded 13 hits and drew nine walks but left 16 runners on base in the game.
Rhodes 10, Washington U. 1
In their second game of the day, the Bears fell behind 2-0 against Rhodes. In the top of the third inning, Golembo drew a leadoff walk, before stealing second and moving to third on a passed ball. Billig hit a one-out single to right field to cut the Lynx lead to 2-1. In the bottom of the third, Rhodes got the bases loaded with no outs, but senior pitcher Matt Tracy got out of the jam with a pair of flyouts and a fielder's choice to keep the score 2-1.
The Bears had runners on second and third with two outs in the top of the fourth, but a strikeout ended the scoring opportunity. Rhodes added to its lead with two runs on two hits and two walks in the bottom of the fifth to make the score 4-1. The Lynx broke the game open with six runs in the bottom of the sixth inning to extend their lead to 10-1. The Bears got runners on the corners with one out in the top of the seventh, but were unable to plate any runs, and Rhodes finished the game with the 10-1 win.
Rhodes outhit the Bears 11-9 in the game. The Lynx left nine runners on base, while Washington U. stranded eight. Billig (2-for-4, RBI), Lowery (2-for-4), and Doppelt (2-for-3) each recorded multiple hits for the Bears. Tracy (0-1) took the loss after allowing four runs on seven hits, while striking out three in five innings of work. Senior pitcher Max Gordon faced three batters in the sixth inning, allowing two hits and three runs, while sophomore pitcher Max Zhang gave up three runs on two hits in one-third of an inning. Senior pitcher Alan Komorowski struck out seven of the eight batters he faced to end the game.
Bear Notebook: Since 1985, Washington U. is 42-8 against Webster, but the Gorloks had won the last two meetings (11-5, May 16, 2012; 12-9, April 17, 2012) … The Bears are 2-12 against Rhodes since 1985 … Billig had two stolen bases on the day, moving him into a tie for second with Cornell Foggie on Washington U.'s all-time career list with 71; he needs just two more steals to become the all-time leader … Billg has recorded multiple hits in all three games this season for Washington U., giving him 35 multiple-hit games in his career … Lowery also had multiple hits in all three of the Bears' games over the weekend … Bonser's five strikeouts brought his career total to 98.