BRIDGEWATER, Va. – Bridgewater College kept its undefeated ODAC record intact with a pair of victories Sunday afternoon over Emory & Henry. The Eagles won the first game, 5-4 in 10 innings, and then took the second game, 9-3.
The Wasps scored two runs off Bridgewater starter Justin Petock in the first. With two outs, Jordan Woullard singled and stole second. Connor Wise then lined a run-scoring single to center, scoring Woullard with the game's first run. Bransen Christopher worked Petock for a walk and Jessup Lambert followed with a run-scoring single to right, making the score 2-0.
Bridgewater got a run back in the bottom of the first. Nick Fulk led off with a single and stole second. Bryan Sanderson then doubled to right center, scoring Fulk to make the score 2-1.
E&H added an unearned run in the third to make the score 3-1, but then Petock settled in and kept the Wasps off the board until the ninth.
The Eagles added two runs in the sixth to tie the score. Fulk walk to lead off the inning and Sanderson was hit by a pitch. Both runners moved up on a groundout by Jonathan Mason to bring Andrew Hacker to the plate. Hacker hit a grounder to second that scored Fulk and when the second baseman's throw to first was off line, Sanderson also scored to tie the score at 3-3.
Bridgewater took the lead in the seventh when Fulk hit a solo homer to left with two outs, putting the Eagles on top 4-3.
The Eagles carried the one-run lead into the ninth when Brogan Hoover led off with a bloop single to right. Caleb Rotton moved Hoover to second with a sacrifice bunt before Eric Houff flied out to center for the second out of the inning. Sam Line then lined a single off Petock's foot to put runners at the corners with two outs. Petock was unable to continue after taking the liner off the foot and the Eagles went to the pen for Tyler Slanovec.
Slanovec hit Woullard to load the sacks and then hit Wise to force in the tying run. Christopher struck out swinging as the Wasps left the bases full.
After the Eagles failed to score in the bottom of the ninth, Lambert led off the 10th and was hit by a pitch to open the inning. Lefty Ryan Leake entered the game for the Eagles and retired the Wasps to set the stage for the bottom of the inning.
Mason led off the bottom of the 10th with a double down the right field line and continued to third when the throw from the outfield skipped away from the E&H infielders. Hacker then lofted a fly ball to left, scoring Mason with the winning run.
The Eagles managed just eight hits in the opener with Fulk leading the way with a 3-for-4 effort. Leake picked up the win with one hitless inning of work on the mound.
In the nightcap, Mark Smith and Tyler Conley combined for a solid nine innings of work on the mound in the 9-3 victory. Smith pitched six innings and allowed two runs on seven hits. He struck out seven and walked one. Conley earned the save, allowing one run on four hits in the final three innings. He struck out five and walked one.
The Eagles took the lead with a run in the third inning and then broke the game open with four in the fifth.
Derrik Walling led off the inning with a single to right and continued to second when the ball was misplayed in the outfield. Walling moved to third on a wild pitch and scored on a passed ball to put the Eagles on the board.
Matt Maher started the fourth-inning uprising with a single to left. Brandon Stein singled to the gap in left-center and Maher scored all the way from first on an errant throw from the outfield, giving the Eagles a 2-0 lead. Tyler Hoffman's single put runners at the corners and a single by Ryan Fitzgerald gave the Eagles a 3-0 lead. Walling scored a run with a sacrifice fly and a two-out single by Mason scored another run for a 5-0 Bridgewater lead.
The Wasps got to Smith in the fifth, scoring two runs on four hits. Rotton and Houff drove in runs for E&H, cutting the lead to 5-2.
Bridgewater added a run in the bottom of the fifth on a double by Hoffman and then scored its final three runs in the seventh. With two outs, Stein was hit by a pitch and Hoffman singled. Fitzgerald then pulled a ball down into the right field corner for a two-run triple, making the score 8-2. Fitzgerald scored on a single by pinch-hitter Spencer Steele for the Eagles final run.
E&H added its final run in the eighth on a groundout by Andrew Stockstill for the final 9-3 margin.
Bridgewater is now 21-7 overall and 14-0 in the ODAC. The Wasps drop to 8-20, 3-11 in the ODAC.
The Eagles are back in action Monday with a non-conference game at home against Ferrum College.