WASHINGTON, Pa. – The Washington & Jefferson College baseball team opened Presidents' Athletic Conference play with a sweep of visiting Geneva College in the league opening doubleheader for both teams Friday afternoon at Ross Memorial Park. The Presidents claimed a 10-2 win in game one before rolling to a 17-3 victory in game two.

The pair of wins improve the Presidents at 10-4 overall and 2-0 in the conference. The Golden Tornadoes fall to 9-5 overall and 0-2 in the PAC.

W&J 10, Geneva 2 (Game One)
Six Presidents recorded multi-hit games in the 10-2 game one win for the Presidents. Zac Stern (Coroapolis, Pa./Montour) and Jacob LaDuca (Clarence, N.Y./Canisius) finished with three hits apiece. Drew Garth (Glenshaw, Pa./North Hills), Knox Meier (Tampa, Fla./Berkeley Prep), Scout Zaas (Powell, Ohio/Wellington School) and Luke Alvarez (Elizabeth, Pa./Elizabeth-Forward), added two hits each in the 16-hit offensive effort.

The Presidents jumped out to an early lead behind a three-run first inning. LaDuca led off with a single before stealing second base. LaDuca scored on an RBI double by Garth that put the Presidents on the board first. Stern followed with an RBI double to right center that plated Garth. A double by Meier put a pair of runners in scoring position. An RBI groundout for Zaas stretched the Presidents' lead to 3-0 after the first.

W&J manufactured a run in the bottom of the second without the benefit of a hit. Teddy Platt (Venetia, Pa./Peters Township) led off the frame, reached on an error before stealing second. After moving to third base on a failed pickoff play, Platt crossed home on a sac fly by LaDuca, which made it 4-0 after two innings.

The Golden Tornadoes cut the Presidents' lead in half with a pair of runs on a two-run home run in the top of the sixth inning. W&J broke things open with six runs on seven hits in the bottom of the frame. Consecutive singles by Alvarez, Platt and LaDuca loaded the bases. Garth, Stern, Zaas and Brian Feldman (Gibsonia, Pa./Eden Christian Academy) all laced RBI singles during the frame as W&J extended its lead to 10-2.

Ethan Marszalek (Katy, Texas/Seven Lakes) put together a strong effort on the mound. Marszalek worked seven innings, allowing two runs on three hits. The senior recorded eight strikeouts in the victory to move to 2-0 this season.

Ben Pierce (Bel Air, Md./John Carroll) and Brandon Bastian (Barto, Pa./The Hill School) worked scoreless frames in the eighth and ninth innings out of the bullpen.
 
W&J 17, Geneva 3 (Game Two)
The Presidents took control early in game two to secure the PAC sweep. W&J scored nine times and brought 13 hitters to the plate in the opening inning. Stern produced two hits and three RBI to pace the offensive efforts.

Back-to-back solo home runs by Garth and Stern ignited the rally to open the scoring. Singles by Meier and Feldman followed by a walk to Zaas loaded the bases. The Presidents produced runs on a walk by Brendan Cruz (Carnegie, Pa./Chartiers Valley), a sac fly by Tommy Dietrich (Davidsonville, Md./DeMatha Catholic) and a passed ball to extend the lead to 5-0. W&J added a run when Garth was hit by a pitch and another on a passed ball. Stern made it 9-0 with a two-run single that plated LaDuca and Garth.  

W&J tallied an unearned run in the second to stretch the lead to 10-0. Zaas drew a one-out walk and eventually scored on an errant throw on a failed pickoff attempt.

Following a scoreless third inning, W&J tacked on two more runs in the fourth. A leadoff walk by Feldman and a double by Zaas put the runners in scoring position. Cruz brought Feldman in with a sac fly. Dietrich swelled the lead to 12-0 with an RBI single that scored Zaas.

W&J scored five additional runs in the bottom of the fifth. The Presidents had RBI hits in the inning from Jack Anderson (Pittsburgh, Pa./Plum), Nate Hess (Wexford, Pa./North Allegheny) and Brody Bartenstein (Corning, N.Y./Corning-Painted Post).

Dante DiMatteo (Pittsburgh, Pa./Fox Chapel) surrendered just one hit over five shutout innings. The senior registered 10 strikeouts and walked two as he improved his record to 3-0 in 2025.

W&J continues conference play on Tuesday (March 25) when they host Thiel College at Ross Memorial Park. First pitch of the doubleheader is scheduled for 1 p.m.