WASHINGTON, Pa. -- On Senior Day at Ross Memorial Park, the Washington & Jefferson baseball team put on a show for the largest home crowd of the season, as the Presidents beat Saint Vincent by a 16-2 final score. 

With the win today, the Presidents end the 2019 regular season with a 29-11 overall record. In conference, W&J is 21-3, which is tied for the most wins in the PAC since the Red & Black's College World Series campaign of 2017. Saint Vincent concludes the year 20-19 overall and 12-12 in conference. 

In the first inning, James Artale (Chagrin Falls, Ohio/Kenston) opened the bout's scoring with a single up the middle to plate Mullen Socha (Independence, Ohio/St. Ignatius) from third. Spencer Howell (Oakwood, Ohio/Oakwood) put the Red & Black up 2-0 with single to left field two batters later. 

The Red & Black's lead grew in the bottom of the second inning. With runners on first and third, Dante Dalesandro(Pittsburgh, Pa./Mount Lebanon) kicked off a three-run frame with an RBI fielder's choice. Socha and Artale both followed with RBI singles to put W&J up 5-0.  

The game was blown wide open in the bottom of the fourth, when the Presidents took a 14-0 advantage. In the frame, W&J tallied eight runs on eight hits, capped off by Dalesandro's three-RBI triple down the right field line.

The Presidents added one run in both the seventh and eighth innings to secure a 16-2 victory. The Red & Black ended the game with 18 hits, the second most this season, while their 16 runs were tied for third most of the year. 

Leading the W&J offense was senior Shayne Erny (North Ridgeville, Ohio/St. Edward) with a career-high three hits in three at-bats to go along with two runs scored. Dalesandro, Artale, Howell and Joey Bolick (Gibsonia, Pa./Pine-Richland) were all next on the team with two hits each. Dalesandro ended his all-around day with four RBI and two runs scored. 

Of the remaining seniors to receive a plate appearance, Josh Crummer (Great Falls, Va./Flint Hill School), Justin Griffin (Lombard, Ill./Glenbard East) and Cole Reese (Greensburg, Pa./Greensburg Central Catholic) all recorded one hit. Senior pitcher Garrett Harstine (New Philadelphia, Ohio/New Philadelphia) posted his first career at-bat in the eighth and got on by an error with a hard-hit ball to the opposing shortstop. In total, a season-high 33 Presidents made an appearance in the game, with 12 of them tallying a hit.

On the pitching mound, seven different Presidents appeared for at least one inning. Santino Platt (Pittsburgh, Pa./OLSH) got the start and the win, going 3.0 innings without allowing a run. With the victory, the senior hurler ends the regular season with a 5-4 record. 

Mario Lombardi (Follansbee, W.Va./Brooke), Nick Drake (Canonsburg, Pa./Canon-McMillan), James Trainor(Canonsburg, Pa./Canon-McMillan), Tanner Gaerke (Plain City, Ohio/Jonathan Alder), Mitchell Taufer (Washington, Pa./Bishop Canevin) and Clay Martin (Canonsburg, Pa./Canon-McMillan) all made relief appearances. Lombardi and Martin both recorded 1-2-3 innings, while Taufer led the group with four strikeouts.  

The 2019 senior class has helped the Presidents log 125 wins, which includes a 74-16 record in PAC play and a 76-22 mark at home at Ross Memorial Park. This group was a part of W&J's first-ever NCAA Regional Championship and College World Series appearance in 2017. 

The top-seeded Presidents will begin the PAC Tournament on Thursday, May 9, against fourth-seeded Bethany, with the time still to be determined. By winning the PAC regular-season title, W&J will host all games of the PAC Tournament at Ross Memorial Park.