WASHINGTON, Pa. -- The Washington & Jefferson baseball team scored 18 runs on 20 hits as they rolled to a 18-3 victory over visiting Westminster College Sunday in a Presidents' Athletic Conference game at Ross Memorial Park.
The game served as the regular season finale for both squads. W&J finishes the 2022 regular season slate at 32-8 overall and 25-2 in PAC play. Westminster concludes the regular season at 22-17 overall and 17-10. The victory gives W&J the sweep of the regular season series. The Presidents swept seven of the nine conference series.
Westminster opened the scoring with a run on two hits in the top of the first inning. The lead was short-lived for the Titans, as the Presidents took control with three runs in the bottom of the second inning.
Knox Meier (Tampa, Fla./Berkeley Prep) and Jacob LaDuca (Clarence, N.Y./Canisius) opened the frame with back-to-back singles. That set the stage for Alec Jackson (Hudson, Ohio / Hudson), who sent a pitch back up the middle to plate Meier for W&J's first run. Two batters later, Jason Gregovits (Avon Lake, Ohio / Avon Lake) burned the Titans, as he sent a triple to deep center field to score Jackson. Tyler Horvat (Irwin, Pa./Penn Trafford) added an RBI single to push Gregovits home for a 3-1 lead.
W&J scored three more in the bottom of the fourth to stretch its lead to 6-1. Horvat tripled home Gregovits before Rush and Peter Kalinski (Washington, D.C./Saint John's College) added RBI singles.
The Presidents effectively put the game away with five more runs in the bottom of the fifth inning. Scout Zaas(Powell, Ohio/Wellington School) led off with a ground-rule double and scored a batter later when Meier tripled to right field. W&J used five consecutive hits to score four more runs in the inning. La Duca, Horvat, Nate Rush(Wheeling, W.Va./The Linsly School), Kalinski and Roman Samson (Tampa, Fla./Berkeley Prep) each tacked on an RBI in the inning.
The Titans scored single runs in the seventh and eighth innings to cut the deficit to 11-3. However, W&J tacked on seven more runs in the eighth inning. The big hit came from Tony Tamilia (Coraopolis, Pa./Moon), who slugged a two-out grand slam over the left field fence.
A trio of senior pitchers led the way for W&J Sunday on Senior Day. Henry Litman (Marietta, Ga./Walton) tossed five innings to earn the victory on the mound. He allowed just one run on two hits. Litman struck out eight as he improved to 7-2 in 2022. Johnny Nixon (Darlington, Pa./Blackhawk) retired the Titans in order in the sixth while Kamden Kautz(Oro Valley, Ariz./Ironwood Ridge) finished the game with a scoreless ninth inning.
Horvat finished with three hits, three RBI and two runs scored. Gregovits finished with three hits and three runs scored on Senior Day. Rush, Kalinski, Samson and Meier finished with two hits apiece.
The Presidents and Titans will match up on Thursday in the opening game of the 2022 PAC Baseball Tournament. First pitch for the nine-inning contest will be at 1 p.m. at Ross Memorial Park. The Presidents will serve as host after securing the No. 1 seed. The Titans, in the tournament for the first time since 2012, will be the No. 4 seed. Second-seeded Saint Vincent and third-seeded Grove City will square off in the second game on Thursday. The Bearcats and Wolverines will match up at 4 p.m.