Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 (LEBANON, Ill., March 15)—The McKendree University baseball team was swept in both ends of a Great Lakes Valley Conference doubleheader Saturday at Hypes Field by Rockhurst University. The visiting Hawks rolled to a 14-2 win in the opener before posting an 11-0 shutout victory in game two.
Both squads were kicking off their GLVC schedules on Saturday. The Bearcats move to 3-4 on the year and will look to bounce back into the win column on Sunday when the two teams are scheduled to wrap up their four-game weekend series. First pitch is slated for noon.
Two Rockhurst pitchers combined to hold McKendree to just six hits on the day. Josh Tols, the Hawks' game two starter, tossed a one-hitter allowing only a third inning infield single to junior outfielder Kyle Rutledge (Bloomington, IL/Normal).
Rockhurst jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the first inning of the opener. The Hawks tacked on two runs in the second, a single run in the third and three more in the fourth to open up a 10-0 advantage. McKendree broke up the shutout by scoring a pair of runs in the sixth inning. Senior catcher Tyler Collins (Marietta, GA/Walker) opened the frame with a double down the left-field line. Senior shortstop Tony Kossina (Millstadt, IL/Belleville West) followed with an RBI double to plate Collins with the Bearcats' first run of the day.
Kossina moved to third on a passed ball and scored when Rutledge delivered a run-scoring double to trim the McKendree deficit to 10-2. Rockhurst then closed out the first game with a four-run outburst in the top of the seventh inning.
Sophomore left-hander Sam Lidisky (Swansea, IL/Althoff Catholic) was charged with the loss for McKendree. Lidisky went 2 1/3 innings, giving up six hits and seven runs, five of which were unearned. Lidisky walked two and struck out five.
Game two started in similar fashion to the first as Rockhurst exploded for seven runs in the top of the first inning off McKendree freshman left-hander Brad Henry (Godfrey, IL/Alton). The Hawks sent 11 batters to the plate in the uprising. Rockhurst added to its lead with a run in the second inning, two tallies in the fifth inning and a final run in the seventh.
Meanwhile, Tols held McKendree in check, giving up the infield single to Rutledge on a 2-2 pitch. Tols did walk six batters and struck out five in his gem.
Henry allowed eight earned runs and eight hits over three innings in taking the loss for the Bearcats. Henry walked three and fanned two.
