MAY 4, 2018

KING'S BASEBALL FALLS TO TOP-SEEDED DESALES IN MAC FREEDOM CONFERENCE TOURNEY OPENER ON FRIDAY

WEST LAWN -  The opportunities were there. But the King's College baseball team was unable to cash in on the chances they had in the opening round of the double-elimination MAC Freedom Conference Tournament Friday afternoon at Owls Field in West Lawn. The end result was a 9-1 loss to top-seeded DeSales University.

With the win, DeSales improved to 28-13 while King's slipped to 20-15.

Visit the MAC Tournament Page for all the results and upcoming game schedule.
http://www.gomacsports.com/sports/2017/7/6/2018BSBchamp.aspx?path=baseball

The Monarchs had chances to challenge the Bulldogs but the runners King's were able to put on base remained there as the Monarchs were unable to get key hits at the right times. In all, the Monarchs stranded 11 base runners in the game. King's also hurt itself defensively with three errors as only four of the Bulldogs nine runs were earned.

After the teams played through two scoreless innings, King's had a golden opportunity to score in the third when the Monarchs loaded the bases but were unable to score.  DeSales would answer with a run in the bottom of the frame to take a 1-0 lead on a solo home run by Aaron Fritz.

King's had another opportunity in the fifth when the Monarchs loaded the bases with one out. But bad luck struck when Christian Pack drilled a screaming line drive, but DeSales shortstop made a spectacular leaping catch, resulting in a double-play to end the inning.

And much like the third inning, DeSales struck in the bottom of the frame with four runs,, two unearned.

On the seventh inning, King's managed to get runners to first and third with two out, but an infield pop-up ended the frame. And for the third time in the game after King's missed out on a chance to score, DeSales came back in their half of the inning to take advantage of their opportunities. In the bottom of the seventh, DeSales scored four more runs, three unearned, to forge a 9-0 lead.

King's finally got on the board in the ninth when Bruce Breithaupt reached base on a fielder's choice and eventually score from third on a sacrifice fly by Dan Hartson to set the final score of the game.

Sean McKee was King's top offensive player with a 3-for-4 effort Hartson, Pack, Matt Mellinger, and Shawn Stone all had one hit for the Monarchs. John Wickiser was the losing pitcher for King's, allowing nine runs, only four which were earned, on nine base hits and struck out eight batters.

Fritz led the Bulldogs by going 3-for-3 with a home run and scored two runs. Sean Hanczaryk went 2-for-4 with three RBI, including a two-run double. Connor Lafferty finished 1-for-4 with a two-run double. Adam Donovan was the winning pitcher for DeSales, tossing six and two-thirds innings of scoreless baseball while striking out four batters.

King's will play the loser of Friday night's other first-round pairing between second-seeded Misericordia and third-seeded Wilkes Saturday at 3:00 PM.