St. Louis, Mo., April 11, 2012 — Senior pitcher Taylor Berman allowed one earned run in seven innings and the Bears connected on back-to-back-to-back home runs in the seventh as the Washington University in St. Louis baseball team posted a 13-1 win over Fontbonne University Thursday afternoon at Kelly Field in St. Louis.
Berman, who improved to 3-2 with the victory, was in control from start to finish. He retired the first seven batters of the game and did not allow a hit until the third inning. Berman struck out four and walked two en route to the 10th victory of his career.
The Bears broke a 0-0 tie with two runs in the bottom of the second. Sophomore Chris Lowery led off the inning with a triple to right center – his first of the season and third of his career – to get things going for Washington U. Sophomore Zack Kessinger was hit by pitch in the ensuing at-bat, and then sophomore Brandon Deger reached on an error allowing Lowery to score. Kessinger came around to score on a fielders choice by junior Andrew Dwoskin to make it 2-0.
The Bears scored six runs with two outs in the fourth to bust the game wide open. Dwoskin drove in a run with a single to right, and then sophomore Noah Doppelt singled up the middle scoring two to push the lead to 5-0. The RBIs for Doppelt were his first two of the season. Freshman Max Golembo added a two-out RBI single, and sophomore Andrew Goldstick doubled to left driving in a pair to make it 8-0.
Fontbonne (8-16) got on the scoreboard with a run in the top of the seventh, but Washington U. responded in its next at-bat as junior Kyle Billig, Lowery and Kessinger homered in three-consecutive at-bats to make it 11-1. It marked the first home run of the season for all three players. Lowery added a two-RBI single in the eighth to round out the scoring for the Bears.
Lowery was 3-for-5 with three RBIs and three runs scored, and upped his team-leading batting average to .396 and RBI total to 21. He also tossed the final two innings, allowing one hit while striking out two. Billig added two hits, two runs scored and the 78th stolen base of his career. Washington U. had 13 hits in the win, its third-straight game with double-figures hits.
Washington University (17-10) has the weekend off before returning to action Tuesday, April 16, at NCAA Division II Lindenwood University. Game one of the doubleheader starts at 3 p.m.
Bear Notebook: Fontbonne won the first meeting between the two teams – a 4-3 victory March 7 at Kelly Field … The Bears entered the game with three home runs in 858 at-bats … Washington U. is 9-4 this season at home … The home run for Kessinger in the seventh was the first of his career … Sophomore Ian Kelso registered the first hit of his career in the eighth … Goldstick has reached base in 20-straight games.