ANNVILLE, PA (April 13, 2024) - - King's College baseball came up short in a Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) Freedom doubleheader against Lebanon Valley College this afternoon at the Flying Dutchmen's own McGill Field. Lebanon Valley took the first game 16-3 over King's, and while the Monarchs battled through the second, the Flying Dutchmen still came out on top 13-10.
Chase Yochem hit his third homerun of the season in the second game, while
Brennen Schneider added a triple in the first.
Jaiden Wanamaker,
Zach Day,
Caleb Graham,
Nick Ciszak and Schneider all contributed doubles throughout the day as well.
Game 1 - L, 3-16
The Monarchs took an early lead in the top of the first and plated its first run of the day as Yochem sent a single up the middle to send Wanamaker in to score. The Flying Dutchmen tied things up in the bottom of the inning in similar fashion as King's, scoring on a single through the middle of the field. The game remained tied 1-1 until the third inning. Wanamaker doubled down the third base line to put himself in scoring position just in time for Day to single out to right field for the RBI and the Monarchs get up to 2-1 over Lebanon Valley.
The Monarchs' lead unfortunately was short-lived after the Flying Dutchmen had a big inning at the plate in the bottom of the third. Nico Santoro doubled in Lebanon Valley's first at-bat and was followed by back-to-back home runs from Shane Stossel and Logan Brewer to put themselves ahead 4-2. Shortly after, Jace Fetterman hit a two-run homer of his own to increase the Flying Dutchmen's lead to 6-2 before the top of the fourth.
Both teams played tough in the field throughout the fourth inning with no runs scored until the bottom of the fifth. The Flying Dutchmen had a big inning on offense to pick up seven more runs and build their lead to 13-2 going into the sixth.
Schneider hit his triple in the top of the sixth to send
Michael Marmolejos to the plate to put another run of the scoreboard for the Monarchs. The Flying Dutchmen picked up three more in the bottom of the inning after Luke Pollack hit a three-run double. Neither team scored in the seventh inning, giving Lebanon Valley the win with a final score of 16-3.
Despite the loss, King's tallied five strikeouts on the mound, including two from
Dusty Shaver, who only allowed three hits in 2.0 innings pitched and 13 batters faced. Wanamaker scored two of the Monarch's three runs, while Marmolejos plated the third. Wanamaker also added two hits along with Day, Yochem and Schneider. The trio also earned an RBI each.
Game 2 - L, 10-13
King's bounced back from the first game to score early on again in the top of the first. Ciszak doubled to right center to send Yochem home after singling to left field for a 1-0 lead. Brewer hit his second homer of the day for the Flying Dutchmen in the bottom of the inning to takeover 2-1. Lebanon Valley picked up a third run off a single before heading into the next inning. Stossel then tripled to right center for an RBI in the bottom of the second to give the Flying Dutchmen a 4-1 lead.
The Monarchs tightened its trail in the top of the third when Day put a double out in right center field to send
Brayden Schoonmaker to the plate for the RBI. Yochem followed up with a single up the middle to get Wanamaker home and bring King's within one run of Lebanon Valley at 4-3. The Flying Dutchmen secured one more run in the bottom of the third off a double to go up to 5-3.
In the bottom of the fourth, Lebanon Valley picked up a sixth run when a runner advanced home off an error. Yochem answered soon after with a home run to start the top of the fifth. King's picked up his offensive momentum as Ciszak and Graham both hit singles before Ciszak scored on a sacrifice bunt by Schneider. Graham scored in the next at-bat despite Schneider and
Owen Kosar getting out in a double play to tie the game at 6-6.
King's carried its offensive momentum into the sixth inning as Graham hit a three-run double followed by a double to right field for Schneider for another RBI. This put the Monarchs ahead 10-6, but the Flying Dutchmen were ready with a response in the bottom of the inning. They picked up one RBI on a single before Brewer hit a third home run for three more runs. Fetterman hit another two-run homer at the end of the inning to put a 12-10 lead on the scoreboard for Lebanon Valley.
While neither team scored in the seventh inning, the Flying Dutchmen picked up its last run of the day in the bottom of the eighth on a fourth home run for Brewer for a final score of 13-10.
Adin Hoderewski threw two strikeouts on the mound for the Monarchs. Yochem led King's at the plate with three hits, including a home run, in four at-bats for three runs and two RBIs. Graham finished with three RBIs and two runs from two hits, while Ciszak ended with two runs and one RBI on two hits. Day also added a run and an RBI from two hits, followed by Schoonmaker with a run and a hit and Schneider with two hits and an RBI.
The Monarchs and Flying Dutchmen are back at it again tomorrow, Sunday April 14, for one more MAC Freedom match up at King's own Lipo Field. First pitch is scheduled for 1 pm.
