WMVO Good Times Great Oldies
FORT PIERCE, Fla. — Kenyon College’s first doubleheader of the young season can be described as a tale of two halves. The Owls dominated game one early before holding off Elizabethtown College late for a 12-8 victory, and Kenyon came out on the wrong side of a 15-6 decision in game two. Once the dust settled on the pair of three-hour ball games, the Owls improved to 2-1, while the Blue Jays stayed even at 3-3.
Kenyon got a huge boost early in game one, tacking on eight runs over the second and third innings. All three second-inning runs were unearned as the Blue Jays gave Kenyon a hand, and Drew Robinson hit a two-RBI double to put the Owls ahead 3-0.
Stephen Carr and Robinson kept it rolling in the third frame with a pair of two-RBI singles before Malcolm Gaynor picked up an RBI on a fielder’s choice. The teams then traded two-run half-innings as Kenyon led 10-2 at the midway point, but the road to victory was not as smooth as Kenyon would have hoped.
Four runs in the bottom of the fourth made it a 10-5 game, but an incredible diving catch by Robinson saved a run, and the Owls answered with a run in each of the next two innings. Despite leading 12-5, the bottom of the sixth frame produced a lot of drama as Elizabethtown cobbled an improbable comeback together. Four singles and a walk had the Blue Jays set up with the bases loaded and the tying run on deck with just one out.
A sacrifice fly made it 12-8, but Liam Rosengren got out of the inning to strand three Blue Jays and keep Kenyon on top. Elizabethtown threatened again in the bottom of the seventh, loading the bases with no outs after Rosengren conceded a single and Edwin Groff plunked the first two batters he faced. With the tying run at the plate, Groff secured a strikeout before benefitting from a stellar double-play on a lineout right to Niko Price, who stepped on first to clinch the win.
Game two was a different story, as Elizabethtown scored six runs in the top of the first inning. The Owls briefly bounced back after a two-RBI double by Tripper Capps in the bottom of the frame, but the Blue Jays pulled ahead 14-2 by the middle of the third.
Ben Gimbel provided a spark both at and behind the plate. The catcher made some acrobatic stops to help his pitchers out, and he picked up two RBIs with a base knock in the bottom of the third. Wild pitches, hit-by-pitches, and walks helped Kenyon add two runs in the bottom of the fifth, but the game ended with the Blue Jays leading 15-6.
Kenyon gets a day off on Tuesday before taking on Thiel College for the second time at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, March 8. The Tomcats are 1-1 after the Owls handed them a 10-3 defeat on Monday, March 5, and will play once before matching up with Kenyon.
