Sanford, Fla., March 9, 2014 – The Washington University in St. Louis baseball team posted a 1-1 record on the first day of the University Athletic Association (UAA) Championship Sunday afternoon. The Bears lost to Emory University 7-3 in the tournament opener, before rallying for a 4-3 win over the University of Rochester in game two.
Washington U. (2-4, 1-1 UAA) returns to action against Brandeis University Monday, March 10. First pitch is set for 4 p.m. (ET) at Sanford Memorial Stadium.
Emory 7, Washington U. 3
The Bears got on the scoreboard in the top of the first when senior Kyle Billig was hit by a pitch and junior Chris Lowery drew a one-out walk. After Billig and Lowery each advanced a base on a wild pitch, junior Zack Kessinger drove in Billig on an RBI groundout to make it 1-0. Emory answered with a run in the bottom of the inning to even the score. The Eagles took advantage of a walk and back-to-back stolen bases to get a runner to third, before scoring on an RBI groundout.
In the bottom of the third, Emory took advantage of a pair of walks and got two timely hits to score three runs and take a 4-1 lead. The Bears got one run back in the top of the fourth when senior Andrew Dwoskin doubled down the left-field line and came around to score on a two-out single by freshman CJ Price to make it 4-2. Emory added a run in the bottom of the inning, before extending the lead to 7-2 with one run each in the sixth and seventh innings. The Bears took advantage of an error by the Eagles to score an unearned run in the top of the eighth, but were retired in order in the ninth as Emory earned the 7-3 win.
Washington U. was limited to five hits in the game, while Emory finished with 11. The Bears' pitchers also issued five walks on the day. Sophomore Max Golembo finished 2-for-4 to lead the Bears offensively. Junior Dom Quaranta (0-2) took the loss, allowing four runs on three hits and four walks in 2.1 innings. Junior Kunal Patel replaced Quaranta in the third inning, and gave up two runs on five hits, while striking out a career-high five batters. Sophomore Spencer Neal pitched the final two innings for the Bears, allowing one run on three hits, while recording two strikeouts.
Washington U. 4, Rochester 3
Senior Stephen Bonser (1-0) threw a complete game against Rochester to pick up his 20th career victory for the Bears. He scattered eight hits and allowed two earned runs, while striking out nine. Bonser also did not allow a walk in the game.
Rochester struck first in the game, scoring a pair of runs in the top of the first inning to grab a 2-0 lead. In the bottom of the first, the Bears took advantage of back-to-back walks to leadoff the inning, and a single by Dwoskin made the score 2-1. Golembo drew a leadoff walk in the third and stole second before advancing to third on a wild pitch. Lowery then singled to left field to drive in Golembo to tie the game. In the bottom of the fourth, Washington U. got the bases loaded with two outs after singles by sophomore Kyle Kozak, freshman Ben Browdy and Golembo, but a flyout ended the inning and the scoring threat for the Bears.
The score remained 2-2 until the seventh inning, when the Yellowjackets turned a leadoff double into a run to take a 3-2 lead. In the bottom of the inning, Golembo hit a leadoff double for the Bears, but was caught trying to steal third. After Billig drew a walk, Lowery reached on a fielder's choice. He advanced from first to third on an errant throw by the Rochester catcher in a pickoff attempt. Kessinger was hit by a pitch to keep the inning alive for Dwoskin, who doubled down the left-field line to score both Lowery and Kessinger and give the Bears a 4-3 lead. Bonser retired the Yellowjackets in the top of the ninth to finish off the win for the Bears.
Both teams finished with eight hits in the game. Dwoskin led the way for the Bears, finishing 2-for-3 with three RBIs. Golembo also 2-for-3 with two walks and a run scored.
Bear Notebook: Bonser's 20 wins is tied for seventh on Washington U.'s all-time career leaderboard … Bonser also moved up to eighth on the Bears' all-time career innings pitched list (227.1) … Junior Andrew Goldstick had one stolen base on the day, moving him into a tie for ninth on the WUSTL career list (34) … Kessinger had his 23-game hitting streak come to an end against Rochester, but extended his reached base streak to 24 games … Dwoskin has recorded at least one hit in each of Washington U.'s six games this season, and the Rochester contest marked his third time recording multiple RBIs in a game this season … Billig, Dwoskin, Golembo and Kessinger have all reached base safely in each of the Bears' first six games.