HAMBURG, N.Y. – The Hilbert College baseball team hosted their first home game of the 2016 season and things were looking good early in the day.
Penn State Behrend took a pair (8-6 and 21-8) of AMCC wins to improve to 19-9 and stay a-top of the leader board at 8-2.
Hilbert trailed in the opening game 6-0 through five innings but battled back in the bottom of the 6th and 7th. The Hawks (6-16, 1-7) ran out of time and lost by two runs.
Michael Voveris (0-3) went six innings and gave up one earned run off 10 hits and six walks.
Winfred Nelson stepped to the mound in the top of the 7th and gave up one hit that lead to an unearned run against five batters.
Behrend finished the day with 11 hits, posting eight runs but scoring seven unearned runs thanks to Hilbert's six errors in the field.
Taylor Haug was perfect at the plate going 3-for-3 and
Anthony Wurstner and
Ryan Bonafede each hit doubles today.
But it was
Kevin Moore who started the rally in the sixth inning with his 2-run homer to right field to give Hilbert hope, down 7-2.
The Lions added another unearned run in the top of the seventh before Hilbert went back to the plate.
Jesus Rivera singled to left field and Haug earned a hit to third base before
Paul Wujek stepped to the plate. Wujek singled to right center and advanced on the throw as Behrend's attempt to throw Rivera out at home was late.
Wustner doubled to right center and both runners made it home for an 8-5 score. After a Lion's pitcher change, Bonafede doubled back to center field and pushed Wurstner to third. Moore's RBI ground-out posted Hilbert's final run before a fielder's choice out-at-second ended the game.
The night cap game started much differently than it ended. Behrend put two runs on the board in the top of the 1st and one in the 2nd before Hilbert forced a 3-3 tie at the bottom of the second.
After coming off a double-play defensively
Paul Wujek tied the All-Time Doubles Turned stat at Hilbert (33) and ended the top of the 2nd inning. Then back-to-back hits by Bradly Perrin and Haug became ducks on the pond after a passed ball moved them to 2nd and 3rd base. Wujek reached on a throwing error by the short stop and Perrin and Haug sprinted home. Wurstner singled to center field and Wujek made it home for the only tie score in the game.
The Lions hit a pair of home runs (3rd and 4th innings) as they forced a Hilbert pitcher change after four batters in the top of the 5th inning. Behrend then hit a 3-run homer in the top of the 7th which helped stretched their lead (15-3).
Haug and Rivera singled to start the 7th and Wujek doubled scoring just Haug as the only run.
Behrend batted another 2-run homer in the 9th collecting 21 runs by the bottom of the inning.
With a 2-out count against them, Hilbert added four more runs before the game ended in the bottom of the 9th.
Wujek hit another double scoring Rivera, and
David Paulstich singled up the middle with Wujek using his speed to make it home.
With bases loaded,
Mark Anderson earned a walk pushing Paulstich home and
Eric Flores' single through the left side gave Rivera time to cross the plate for the Hawks' final score of the day.
Wujek went 2-for-4 with a pair of doubles, earning 4 RsBI. Haug had another strong game hitting 3-for-4 and Perrin picked up three hits and a stolen base.
Hilbert's bull pen went the full game without one strike out and
Christopher Newman took his fourth loss of season going 4.1 innings.
The Hawks have a big AMCC game coming up this Thursday (4/21) when they travel to Medaille College (McCarthy Park, Buffalo) for a 1pm double header. The Mavericks (7-16) sit one game ahead of Hilbert in AMCC standings at 2-6.
