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FORT PIERCE, Fla. – Kristopher Davis and Kevin Elwell teamed up to silence 25th-ranked Misericordia's bats Friday morning, pitching the Elizabethtown College baseball team by the Cougars for the second time this week, 3-0. The Blue Jays head home from Florida with a 6-3 record in advance of their home opener next Tuesday.
Davis made his season debut after suffering a knee injury in the Commonwealth Conference Men's Soccer Championship back in November. He went three strong innings with two strikeouts, one hit and one walk, before turning the game over to Elwell.
Elizabethtown (6-3) grabbed a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first on Tyler Weary's double play ball. Alex Holbert, who was plunked to start the inning and went to third on a Parke Martin single.
Freshman Elwell worked out of a minor jam in the fourth, his first inning of work. He hit Joe Tagliarini with one out and Nick Hair reached on an error with two down to put a pair on base for the Cougars (4-4).
Julian Faria flew out to right, however, ending the threat.
Elwell settled in, retiring Misericordia 1-2-3 in the next two innings.
The Blue Jays broke through for two more runs in the sixth with a two-out rally. Ryan Shirk and Frank Ragozzino were rewarded for their patience with consecutive walks, setting up Holbert's RBI single. Holbert has now hit safely in four straight games and his base hit ended Corey Vogeli's day.
Vogeli's line was a respectable 5.2 innings pitched, seven hits, two walks and seven strikeouts, but he left the potential loser with E-town's duo holding the Cougar offense in check.
Martin delivered another two-out RBI with his second single of the day to put the Jays up by three.
Misericordia got a runner to third in the seventh against Elwell, and again in the eighth, but came up empty both times.
Both of Elwell's appearances this week came against the Cougars. He wasn't bad last Sunday when he started and threw six innings of seven-hit, three-run ball, leaving with a no decision. But, he fared even better Friday. Elwell allowed only two hits, walked one and struck out three in lowering his earned run average to 2.25.
Martin had the only multi-hit game between both teams, going 2-for-4. Holbert, Weary, Dylan Manning, Brian Portillo, Aaron Rahn and Colton King had one each for the Blue Jays, who outhit the Cougars 8-3.
Elizabethtown opens its home schedule Tuesday with a non-conference game against York (Pa.). Game time is 3:30 p.m.
