WASHINGTON, Pa. – The Washington & Jefferson College baseball team racked up six home runs, including three by Josh Dezenzo (Alliance, Ohio/Marlington) during a doubleheader sweep of Thiel College on Tuesday in Presidents' Athletic Conference play at Ross Memorial Park.

The Presidents hit three home runs in game one to secure the 9-3 victory over the Tomcats. W&J added three more long balls in a 13-3 win in game two to complete the sweep.

W&J stretches its winning streak to five games. The Presidents move to 12-4 overall and 4-0 in PAC play. The losses drop the Tomcats to 4-13 overall and 0-2 in league play.

Game One – W&J 9, Thiel 3

Three home runs powered the Presidents to a 9-3 victory in Tuesday's opener. Dezenzo led the offensive efforts with a pair of home runs in the win. Drew Garth (Glenshaw, Pa./North Hills) launched a three-run home run. Knox Meier (Tampa, Fla./Berkeley Prep) finished with a multi-hit effort for the Presidents.

After two scoreless frames, W&J got on the board in the bottom of the third inning. Walks drawn by Dezenzo and Jacob LaDuca (Clarence, N.Y./Canisius) set up a three-run no-doubt shot by Garth over the right center field fence. The Garth blast staked the Presidents to a 3-0 lead.

W&J tacked runs on in the fourth, fifth and sixth innings. Dezenzo slugged his first home run of the 2025 campaign in the fourth. His two-run home run made it 5-0 Presidents after four innings. LaDuca singled, stole second and scored on an RBI single by Zac Stern (Coraopolis, Pa./Montour). Later in the fifth, Scout Zaas (Powell, Ohio/Wellington School) singled home Stern to stretch the lead to 7-1. Dezenzo led off the sixth inning with a solo home run to make it 8-1 Presidents after six innings.

The Tomcats scored twice in the top of the seventh to cut the Presidents' lead to 8-3. W&J tallied the game's final run with Brendan Cruz (Carnegie, Pa./Chartiers Valley) laced an RBI single to right field in the eighth.

Freshman pitcher Erik Streussnig (Pittsburgh, Pa./Plum) picked up his third win of the season on the mound. Streussnig improved to 3-0 on the season. He allowed one run on one hit in five innings of work. Streussnig struck out six and walked four during the outing.

Game Two – W&J 13, Thiel 3 (8 Innings)

The Presidents' power surge carried over into game two. W&J hit three more home runs to secure the conference sweep.

Stern opened the scoring with a solo home run in the bottom of the first to stake the home team to an early lead.

After escaping a bases loaded and no outs jam in the top of the third inning, W&J tacked on two runs to its lead in the bottom of the frame. LaDuca singled and stole second before scoring on an RBI double by Garth. Following a hit by Meier that put runners on the corners, John Klein (Vienna, Va./Madison) scored during a rundown recorded the third out of the inning.

The Tomcats evened the score with two runs in the fourth and another score in the fifth inning. The Presidents were quick to respond, using a leadoff triple by Paddy Hernjak (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Cumberland Valley) to set up shop in the bottom of the frame. LaDuca followed with an infield hit to score Hernjak and help W&J regain the lead. Meier pushed the Presidents' advantage to 6-3 with a two-run two-out home run.

W&J plated four more runs in the sixth. Dezenzo tacked on his third home run of the day. His solo shot coupled with a bases-clearing double by Klein helped W&J pour it on as the lead extended to 10-3.  

The Presidents finished off the mercy-rule win with a three spot in the eighth inning. Nate Hess (Wexford, Pa./North Allegheny) provided an RBI single during the final frame. The game ended when a sac fly by Ryan Ross (Fredericktown, Pa./Beth-Center) made it a 10-run victory.

Nate Nolan (McDonald, Pa./West Allegheny) picked up the win in relief. Nolan improves to 2-1 on the season after tossing two innings out of the bullpen.

W&J travels to Waynesburg University for a conference doubleheader on Saturday (March 29). First pitch of game one is slated for 1 p.m.