Three Wayne State pitchers combined for 10 strikeouts while designated hitter
Max Heard went 2 for 3 with a double, two RBI and two runs scored to lead the Wildcats past Gannon (Pa.) 8-2 Sunday morning at the RussMatt Central Florida Invitational Baseball Tournament played at Northeast Regional Park in Davenport, Florida. WSC is now 3-7 on the year while Gannon falls to 5-5.
Scoreless entering the third inning, Wayne State got on the scoreboard first as
Casey Prychak walked and scored on a Heard RBI single for a 1-0 lead.
The 'Cats made it 3-0 in the fourth with a pair of runs as
Kaden Young walked,
Braden Cannon singled followed by a two-run triple to center field by freshman outfielder
Connor Hunt.
Gannon got one run back in the bottom of the fourth to cut the WSC lead to 3-1, but the 'Cats got the run back in the top of the fifth thanks to three walks with
Chase Douglas stealing home plate for a 4-1 Wildcat advantage.
The Golden Knights closed out their scoring with a single run in the sixth to make the score 4-2.
Wayne State came up with three runs in the seventh for a 7-2 lead.
Noah Strizek opened with a solo homer to left field. Douglas walked and touched home plate on a
Max Heard double for the second run while Heard later scored on a fielder's choice by Cannon for a 7-2 Wayne State lead.
The 'Cats closed the scoring in the ninth with one run as
Quinn McCafferty had a sacrifice fly to score Heard giving WSC an 8-2 win.
Wayne State had one more hit than Gannon 7-6. Heard was 2 for 3 with a double, two RBI and two runs scored. Strizek had a solo homer with Hunt adding a two-run triple.
Kaden Young also doubled.
Starting pitcher
Clay Beaumont pitched the first four innings, allowing just two hits and one run (unearned) with five strikeouts and one walk. Senior reliever
Kadyn Van Hill worked the next three innings to earn the win, now 1-0. He gave up one run on four hits with three strikeouts. Senior
Eli Crnkovich closed the contest with two perfect innings of relief, fanning two batters.
The Wildcats play Point Park (Pa.) Sunday afternoon at the RussMatt Invitational in Davenport, Florida.