Scranton Lions Baseball Sweeps Road Doubleheader with Wilkes-Barre

By: Ross Turetsky, Penn State Scranton Athletics

On a chilly Sunday Fun-day on the road on the new turf field at Lake-Lehman high school, the visiting Penn State Scranton baseball squad swept a doubleheader in dominant fashion against local rival Penn State Wilkes-Barre by the scores of 14-5 and 11-5 respectively. With these pair of victories, Scranton sees their overall record improve to 6-12 and their all-important league mark stays at 0-4.

In the game one seven inning affair, the Lions from Scranton scored early and often, as they tallied two runs in the top half of the first inning, two more in the third, a whopping seven in the fifth, two in the sixth, and one more for good measure in the seventh and final frame, as they cruised to their nine run road triumph. Wilkes-Barre's offense scored a trio of runs in the bottom of the second inning, one in the fifth, and one more time in the sixth to account for their five runs in the contest. Scranton also led in the hit department over their opponent by a 10-8 margin.

Scranton's explosive offense was led by the dynamic duo of sophomore team captain Mike DeWolfe and junior center fielder Garrett Walsh who each put up impressive multi-hit performances for their ball club. DeWolfe went 3-5 at the plate, scored a pair of runs, stole two bases, had a game-high four RBI, and crushed a home run. Walsh was a perfect 3-3 at the dish, drilling two doubles, reached base once via the walk, and stole a base to boot. The Lions other RBI came from a pair of freshmen, as third baseman Thomas McIntyre had two and sophomore first baseman Zach Benson chipped in with one.

Meanwhile, Wilkes-Barre also had a two-player combo put up stalwart multi-hit games, as freshman infielder Tyler Sewell and senior center fielder Rian Long set the pace for their team. Sewell went 2-3, with a walk, and a run scored. Long also went 2-3, with a walk, and picked up an RBI as well. The home squad's other RBI came from freshmen Enai Fernandez and AJ Parker who each drove in a run and collected a hit apiece in the matchup.

On the pitching side of things, Scranton started DeWolfe on the mound and he earned the stellar complete game win, tossing all seven innings, only surrendering one earned run, one walk, seven hits, and fanned four Wilkes-Barre batters in his impressive outing. Meanwhile, Wilkes-Barre had a quartet of pitchers toe the slab in the showdown, as junior right-hander Matthew Mager took the loss in his start while eating up three innings, giving up four earned runs, five hits, a hat trick of walks, and struck out three hitters. Fernandez, Parker, and Sewell came in relief out of the bullpen to combine to throw the final four innings of the contest for Wilkes-Barre.

In the game two nightcap seven inning affair, Scranton once again dominated throughout, as their sluggers at the plate were out in full force as they scored a run in the top of the first inning, three more in the second, and a robust seven in the third frame to account for their plentiful 11 run performance. Scranton's powerful offense tallied 10 hits and walked nine times in the battle. Wilkes-Barre got their five runs in the game by collecting one in the bottom of the first inning, one in the second, one in the third, and a pair in the fourth frame.

The Scranton Lions once again had two players lead the way on offense with multi-hit performances, as DeWolfe and Benson each had a trio of hits in the ball game. DeWolfe was a near flawless 3-4 at the plate, scoring twice, knocking in two runs, and stole a base for good measure. Benson also was an impressive 3-4 at the dish, scoring a run, and had an RBI. The other RBI for the road warrior Lions came from freshman shortstop Alex Pagotto who drove in three runs, scored three times, walked twice, stole a base, and smashed a home run, freshman right fielder Ryan Vinton who drove in a pair, and tallied a hit and a run in the contest, and last but certainly not least, Walsh who drove in one, walked once, and got a base hit as well. Honorable mention also goes to stand-out senior Mark Longo, as he had a nice showing at the plate, going 1-2, walked twice, and scored a run.

On the pitching side of things in the nightcap, Scranton had five pitchers combine to throw all seven innings in the matchup. Senior Justin Craigg got the start on the mound and tossed a pair of innings, allowing two earned runs, three hits, two walks, and struck out a batter. Freshman Guy Mushow earned the victory in relief during his one inning of work, allowing no earned runs, walks, or hits, and also fanned a hitter. Freshman Alex Ferguson threw an inning on the bump, giving up two earned runs, a pair of hits, and struck out a batter. Benson tossed a quality two shutout innings out of the pen, surrendering just two hits, and one walk. Lastly, Pagotto wrapped up the day's long baseball festivities by pitching the final inning for his club, allowing just one walk and no hits or runs in his solid appearance. 

Now second-year head coach Collin Ferguson and his 6-12 Penn State Scranton baseball squad will look to stay red hot and extend their four game winning streak when they next travel on the road this upcoming Tuesday to take on non-conference foe Bryant and Stratton-Syracuse in a doubleheader, with first pitch scheduled for 4pm. Meanwhile, the 0-5 Penn State Wilkes-Barre baseball team will look to capture their first win of the season this Friday, April 7^th at 2pm for a scheduled road doubleheader against Penn State Hazleton.