GETTYSBURG, Pa. - The Gettysburg College baseball team used a come-from-behind, walk-off victory in the opener and a pair of solid performances from its starting pitchers to sweep Penn State-Berks its home-opening doubleheader Sunday afternoon at Kirchhoff Field.
The Bullets (13-3), off to their best start since opening 14-2 in 2007, won 4-3 in the opener and 6-1 in the nightcap, running their winning streak to 10 and handing Head Coach John Campo his 500th career victory. Gettysburg has now won 10 games in a row for the second time in as many years.
Senior Chris Yoda (Wall, N.J./Wall) tossed six shutout innings and received a no-decision in the opener, when the Bullets scored twice in the bottom of the seventh after seeing a 2-0 lead evaporate in the top of the inning. Senior Nate Simon (Gwynedd Valley, Pa./Abington Friends School) singled home the game-winning run for his second walk-off hit in as many years.
Junior Brett Harrington (North Bennington, Vt./Mount Anthony Union) tossed five innings to pick up the win in the nightcap, allowing just one run on three hits and two walks while striking out five. Senior Al Posch (Hopedale, Mass./Hopedale) had a big game at the plate, finishing 3-for-3 with a double, two runs, and two RBIs.
In the opener, Gettysburg took a 2-0 lead in the third, loading the bases with none out before Posch lofted a sacrifice fly and Simon drove in a run with a single to center. But starter Steve Koenig and reliever John Bonino blanked the Bullets over the next three innings.
In the meantime, Yoda was in control, allowing just three hits and retiring 10 batters in a row at one point. He worked out of trouble in each of his last two innings, leaving two runners on base in both the fifth and the sixth.
The Nittany Lions (4-7) rallied with three runs in the top of the seventh against freshman reliever Aaron Bezio (Stafford, Va./Mountain View). A hit batsman, single, and walk loaded the bases before an error and a passed ball tied the score. After a strikeout, Berks went ahead 3-2 on a two-out wild pitch.
The Bullets responded in the bottom of the inning, however. Senior Austin Davis (New York, N.Y./Riverdale Country School) drew a one-out walk against reliever Erik Lanzner before classmate Patrick O'Grady (Floral Park, N.Y./Archbishop Molloy) beat out a perfectly-placed bunt to third. A heads-up play put runners on the corners, as Davis moved up to third on the throw to first.
Kyle Hartman was then summoned out of the bullpen, and Posch greeted him with a single through the right side to tie the game at 3-3. O'Grady advanced to third on the play and would easily score when Simon drilled a 1-1 pitch through the left side and past a diving third baseman to give the Bullets their second walk-off victory of the season.
Simon finished 2-for-4 with two RBIs while Bezio (1-0) picked up the win. Lanzner (0-1) was charged with the loss.
Hartman started on the mound for the Nittany Lions in the nightcap, and some early control issues helped Gettysburg assume a 2-0 lead in the first inning. Hartman hit three straight batters to load the bases, and a two-out throwing error by the third baseman allowed two runs to score.
It turned out to be enough run support for Harrington (2-1), who retired the first 10 batters he faced. Berks finally reached base with a one-out walk in the fourth before breaking up the no-hitter with a single two batters later. But Harrington escaped with a pop-out.
The Bullets pushed their lead to 6-0 with two runs apiece in the third and fourth. A four-hit third was capped by RBI-singles from junior Scott Zanghellini (Randolph, N.J./Randolph) and senior Mike Elisio (Bensalem, Pa./Holy Ghost Prep), and Posch completed Gettysburg's scoring for the day with a two-run single in the fourth. Freshman catcher Will Anderson (Long Valley, N.J./West Morris Central), making his first career start, sparked the inning with leadoff double down the leftfield line for his first collegiate hit.
The Lions finally got to Harrington in the fifth with one run on a hit batsman, a walk, and a single. Sophomore Luke Lawrence (West Chester, Pa./West Chester East) came on to throw a pair of shutout innings while facing the minimum six batters, twice inducing a double play after walking the leadoff batter in each frame.
Hartman (2-1) was tagged with the loss, throwing four innings and allowing six runs (four earned) on hits and no walks while striking out five.