BEREA, Ohio – The Baldwin Wallace University baseball team's pitching staff dominated in a non-conference doubleheader sweep of Wittenberg University on Fisher Field.
BW (12-2) took the first game by a score of 9-1 and won the second game 10-3.
In the first game, the Yellow Jackets took a first inning lead after senior All-Ohio Athletic Conference infielder Spencer Badia (Bellaire) rocketed a three-run home run to right field. A second three-run home run by sophomore outfielder Dudley Taw (Sheffield Lake/Brookside) capped off a four-run third inning. With their ace on the mound in senior American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA)/Rawlings All-Mideast Region and All-OAC pitcher Evan Lovick (Mentor), seven runs would be more than enough to secure the victory but the Yellow Jackets added one run each in the fourth and in the sixth while only allowing Wittenberg (3-9) one unearned run in the sixth inning for a 9-1 final score.
Badia and sophomore infielder Jacob Bonner (Akron/Archbishop Hoban) led the Yellow Jackets at the plate with two hits each while Badia also had four runs batted in. Taw had three RBIs with his home run in the third inning.
Lovick threw seven solid innings, allowing just the one unearned run on four hits and two walks with three strikeouts. Sophomore left-handed pitcher Spencer Berg (New Albany) pitched two scoreless innings in relief, striking out every single batter he faced.
Runs were a little harder to come by to start the second game but senior All-OAC outfielder Alex Marcum (Granville) was able to get BW on the scoreboard when he scored on a wild pitch in the bottom of the first inning. Marcum also brought home the team's second run when he doubled to right field to score junior outfielder Reese Albright (Parma/North Royalton). Marcum struck again in the bottom of the sixth inning when he singled home a pair of runs for a 4-0 BW lead, sparking a four-run inning. The Yellow Jackets broke through for four runs in both the sixth and seven innings.
Junior right-handed pitcher Danny Cody (Medina/Brecksville-Broadview Heights) took a perfect game into the top of the seventh inning with two outs before the Tigers finally reached on a dropped third strike. Cody earns his first win of the season, allowing just one hit and striking out a season-high 12 batters.
Marcum, Taw and freshman utility player Alex Ludwick (Brunswick/Padua Franciscan) each had two hits in the second game while Marcum had a game-high three RBIs.
BW will have a quick turnaround as the Yellow Jackets host Thiel (Pa.) College on Sunday, March 18, for a non-conference doubleheader. First pitch is slated for 1 p.m. while the second game will begin at approximately 4 p.m.
