The Oglethorpe baseball team had an excellent day Saturday at Anderson Field, sweeping two games from Hendrix and moving up the SAA standings to fifth place with 3-2 and 4-1 victories over the visiting Warriors. The wins improve the Petrels to 13-9 on the season, 4-6 in SAA play.
Both games were relatively tight affairs decided by three runs or less, but Game 1 featured a down-to-the-wire ending. With the Stormy Petrels ahead 3-2 going into the final frame, Hendrix put the first two men aboard on junior Oglethorpe right-hander Joseph Marco in the ninth. The Warriors sacrificed those runners into scoring position and the next better attempted a safety squeeze, but sophomore third baseman Austin Ferlita made a fantastic glove-flip throw to the plate for the second out of the inning. Then on the next batter, junior shortstop Spencer Transue knocked down a one-hop smash and got back to the ball just in time to flip it to second for the final out, preserving the 3-2 victory.
Sophomore right-hander Matt Davis got the win, improving himself to 5-1 on the season. He went five-plus innings and allowed one earned run on four hits, walking three and striking out two. He gave way to Marco, who pitched the rest of the game and collected his first save of the season, preserving the one-run lead virtually the whole time after allowing an inherited runner to score an unearned run in the sixth. In total, he went four innings without allowing a run, giving up just three hits and striking out a pair. Senior center fielder Vernon Trice had a very solid game for the home team, going 2-for-2 with a walk, an RBI, a run scored and two stolen bases.
The Petrels got down 1-0 right away as Davis labored through a 30-plus pitch inning, but he allowed just the single run and got out of the jam. The Petrels rallied in the fourth, scoring three unearned runs to take the lead. Junior second baseman Keith Dearden singled to lead it off, then senior right fielder Joey McAlpin followed up with a single and both runners moved up a base on a Hendrix error. That miscue would prove to be huge, as the runners were still and second and third with two out when Trice came through with a bunt single, scoring one of them. Then, the Petrels scored back-to-back runs on stolen base-error combinations, giving themselves a two-run lead.
It would have to hold up, as they did not score again. Hendrix scored an unearned run in the sixth, but Marco was able to work his way out of that jam and then out of the ninth-inning situation, as well.
In Game 2, the Petrels got a brilliant pitching performance from junior left-hander Kyle Mitchell, jumped out on top with a four-run first inning, and made several spectacular defensive plays to keep Hendrix at bay.
Mitchell earned his fourth career complete game and his second of the season, throwing all seven innings and allowing just two hits and a single unearned run which scored with two out in the seventh inning. He walked three and struck out one, improving to 3-1 on the season.
The team also got some quality offensive performances, with McAlpin striking the big blow in the form of a three-run, first-inning home run that turned out to be the game-winning margin. Senior left fielder Andre Turnquest also played very well in Game 2, going a perfect 3-for-3 with a double, a walk, a run scored, and three stolen bases. That last mark extends him to 25 steals on the season, putting him second in both the nation and the SAA.
The Petrels jumped all over the Warriors in the first, picking up their only runs of the game in the opening frame. Turnquest led off with a walk and then stole both second and third base. He scored on an RBI double from senior designated hitter Patrick Kulick to give the team a 1-0 lead, then Dearden was hit by a pitch with two outs. That brought McAlpin to the plate and he delivered the three-run bomb to give the home side a 4-0 lead.
The Petrels had several chances to get more, as they left seven men on base over the course of the seven-inning game. It didn't matter, though, with how well Mitchell was pitching.
"These were two solid wins and two very good baseball games," said Head Coach Dan Giordano. "I'm really proud of how we finished off Game 1. We made some really nice defensive plays to preserve that victory. Those are the types of plays we work on throughout the season and it showed today."
"Kyle Mitchell was really good in Game 2," he continued. "When he throws strikes, he can really get an offense off-balance. He threw all three pitches for strikes today, and I'm very proud of him and how he's developed this year. Our defense made some really nice plays in that game, as well. With the series win in our pocket, we have a chance to get the sweep tomorrow. We have a great opportunity ahead of us to move up the SAA standings."
The Petrels will take on Hendrix at noon on Sunday to complete the three-game home series. They'll then go on the road for a week with trips to Demorest, Ga., to take on Piedmont Wednesday and Sewanee, Tenn., for next weekend's SAA series.