Oskaloosa--The William Penn baseball team split the first two games of four game series at new Statesmen Ballpark against MidAmerica Nazarene in Heart of America Athletic Conference doubleheader Saturday.
WPU (18-11, 6-8 Heart) lost game one 12-1 and won game two 12-2.
MNU got on the board first in the opener, putting up one run in the first inning. William Penn had an opportunity in the bottom half of the inning to tie it up with a runner on third but was unable to push the run across.
The visiting team expanded upon its lead in the second and third inning scoring a total of eight runs to get out to 9-0 lead. The fourth inning saw the pioneers tally two more runs to its total. The Statesmen tried to get things going in the fourth inning as Abraham Arroyo (So., Camuy, P.R, Wellness and Recreation) came through with a two out double, but that was all the navy and gold could get as he was left stranded on base.
The offense started coming along for the Statesmen in the sixth inning as Nathan Jessell (Jr., Napa, Calif., Sociology) singled to right field, as Trevor Dooley (Jr., Prole, Iowa, Computer Science) followed with a single of his own helping Jessell advance to third. Arroyo then came through with an RBI single to right field to plate Jessell for navy and golds only run of the game. The pioneers added one more run in the seventh inning as it held off the Statesmen in the bottom half of the inning to secure game one.
Nick George (Jr., Sarina, Ontario, Sociology) was the starter for the Statesmen in game one. In three innings of work, he allowed seven hits on nine runs, while walking three batters and striking out two. Austin Waterhouse (Jr., Keota, Iowa, Sports Management) took over on the mound in the fourth inning for the navy and gold. He allowed three runs on four hits, while striking out three batters and walking two.
Tim Jean (Sr., Libertyville, Ill., Public Accounting), Jessell, and Arroyo all tallied two hits in the opener, while three others also came away with hits in the contest. WPU was outhit 11-9.
The nightcap saw MidAmerica Nazarene get on the board first, scoring two runs in the second inning. Fortunately, William Penn responded in the bottom of the frame with back-to-back singles from Leland Riley II (Fr., Victorville, Calif., Kinesiology) and Dooley to get the inning going for the navy and gold. A groundout then advanced both runners into scoring position, before Blair Speas (So., O'Fallon, Mo., Undecided) doubled off the right field wall to bring pinch runner E.J. Roncone (Jr., Gurnee, Ill., Sports Management) around to score. Jean then came through with a double of his own which plated both Dooley and Speas. George then finished off the inning with a double to center field plating Jean as the Statesmen took the 4-2 advantage.
William Penn got things going again in the third as a hit by pitch by Arroyo and a single by Riley II (who was pinch ran for by Roncone) put Arroyo in scoring position for Dooley who came through with an RBI single which scored Arroyo. A failed pickoff attempt then allowed Roncone to score all the way from second to add another run to the tally. A couple batters later, Speas dropped a sacrifice bunt which advanced Dooley to third. Franklin Aparicio (Sr., Panama City, Panama, Business Management) was then able to reach first and advance to second on an error by the pitcher which also allowed Dooley to score. A single from Jessell then brought Aparicio around to score as the Statesmen took an 8-2 lead.
The fourth inning saw WPU put up more runs as Riley II singled to left field to lead off the inning. Roncone then pinch ran and stole second. Dooley then singled to move Roncone over to third. A drop third strike would then allow Roncone to score and Dooley to make it all the way to third. Speas then double to right field plating Dooley. A couple batters later, Jean hit a sacrifice fly to right field as Speas came in to score to give WPU a 11-2 lead through four innings.
The Statesmen tallied its last run in the fifth inning as Arroyo got on base with a single. A failed pickoff attempt then allowed Arroyo to advance to second, as Joel Holguin (So., San Bernardino, Calif., Sociology) then singled to put runners on the corners. A walk by Speas then loaded the bases for the navy and gold, before Aparicio grounded to third, but an error allowed Arroyo to score. The Statesmen then shutdown the Pioneer hitters down to take game two 12-2.
Brian Thomas (Jr., Shingle Springs, Calif., Sports Management) struck out eight (four walks) as the starter for the Statesmen in six and one-third innings on the bump; the junior gave up two runs on four hits. Camdon Anderson (Fr., Galesburg, Ill., Sports Management) came on in relief in for the final two outs in the game as he gave up no hits and two walks.
Every Statesmen hitter came away with a hit in game two, as Jean led the way with two hits and three RBIs. While Dooley came away with three hits and one RBI. The navy and gold also outhit the Pioneers 18-4.
"Two totally different games." Head Coach Mike Laird said. "We made up for game one with a strong overall game two. Thomas threw very well, and our defense had to make some adjustments with the sun late in the afternoon."
Next Up: The Statesmen finish their four-game set against MidAmerica Nazarene Sunday at Statesmen Ballpark beginning at 1 p.m.
