(ST. LOUIS, Mo., March 22)—The McKendree University baseball team split a pair of non-conference games Wednesday afternoon at Maryville University. After dropping a heartbreaker in game one, 4-3, the Bearcats bounced back with an impressive 4-0 triumph in the nightcap.
Wednesday's split gives McKendree an overall record of 8-10 heading into its Great Lakes Valley Conference opener on Friday at Hypes Field against the University of Illinois Springfield. The Bearcats and Prairie Stars will play a doubleheader with first pitch set for noon. The twinbill was originally slated to be played on Saturday but was moved up due to inclement weather in the weekend forecast.
Three McKendree pitchers combined to toss a five-hitter in the game two victory. Sophomore
Brandon Tatum (Vero Beach, FL/Vero Beach) worked the first 3 2/3 innings to collect the win, giving up just two hits with three walks and three strikeouts. The win was the first of the season for Tatum. Senior right-hander
Matt Wasche (Kansas City, MO/Rockhurst) relieved Tatum to work out of a bases-loaded jam in the bottom of the fourth and went 2 1/3 innings before giving way to senior righty
Matt Henning (Wichita, KS/Bishop Carroll), who pitched the final inning to wrap up the win for the Bearcats.
Junior outfielder
Hayden Bodine (Washington, IL/Washington) continued to swing a hot bat for McKendree, rapping out five hits in the two games against Maryville. Batting in the leadoff spot for the first time this season in the nightcap, Bodine went 3-for-4 with a pair of runs scored. Junior infielder
Andrew Aydt (Wildwood, MO/Eureka) added three hits on the day for the Bearcats, while senior outfielder
Ryan Cates (Anderson, IN/Yorktown) was 2-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI in game two.
Game one was scoreless until the top of the third, when each team scored three runs in its turn at bat. In the top of the third, freshman outfielder
Blake Gray (Niceville, FL/Niceville) started the Bearcats' rally with a one-out walk. Senior outfielder
Colton Calhoun (Mt. Zion, IL/Mt. Zion) followed with a single before the runners moved into scoring position on a wild pitch. Sophomore infielder
Luke Johnson (Barrington, IL/Barrington) then drew a walk to load the bases for McKendree.
Senior infielder
Cody Hall (Harrisburg, IL/Harrisburg) stepped in next and hit a bouncer to third base. Gray raced home on the RBI fielder's choice to give McKendree a 1-0 advantage. Calhoun scored moments later on a wild pitch before Johnson came home on a Saints' error to round out the scoring in the Bearcats' half of the inning. Maryville then answered with its three runs in the bottom of the frame.
The 3-3 score held until the bottom of the seventh inning, when Maryville's Mitch Carriger ripped a walk-off RBI double into the right-field corner to give the Saints the game one victory.
Cates started the contest for McKendree, working the first two innings. Senior left-hander
Dylan Salsman (St. Charles, MO/Francis Howell) was a workhorse over the next four innings for the Bearcats, allowing just two hits with two walks and two strikeouts. Senior right-hander
Austin Starkweather (Herrin, IL/Herrin) was nicked for the loss.
McKendree jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning of game two. Bodine led off the contest with an opposite-field single and moved to second base on a ground out. Cates then reached on an infield single that allowed Bodine to reach third base. Senior catcher
Chris Deaville (Rantoul, IL/Rantoul) then lifted a sacrifice fly to center field to bring home Bodine with the first run of the contest for the Bearcats.
The Bearcats extended its lead to 3-0 by plating two runs in the third inning. Bodine started things once again with a leadoff single before moving to second base on a sacrifice bunt by Hall. Cates stepped in next and lifted a double down the right-field line to score Bodine. Three batters later, Aydt delivered a two-out RBI single to score Cates and give McKendree a three-run advantage. In the top of the fourth, Johnson blooped a leadoff triple to right field before coming in to score on an RBI single by Bodine to push the Bearcats' margin to 4-0.
Maryville (13-8) put together one of its best threat in the bottom of the fourth, loading the bases with two outs. Wasche came on in relief of Tatum, and needed just one pitch to induce an inning-ending fly out to keep the McKendree shutout intact. The Saints re-loaded the bases in the bottom of the seventh, but Henning retired the last batter on another fly out to lock down the victory in the nightcap.
