ATHENS, Tenn. – The Indiana Tech baseball team concluded its opening weekend of the 2017 spring season on Sunday with a sweep of No. 4-ranked Tennessee Wesleyan, taking the first game of the doubleheader, 7-0, in nine innings, while coming from behind to win the nightcap, 5-4, in a seven-inning affair.
The Warriors would get the scoring started in the third, leading off the inning with back-to-back walks before
Glen McClain singled to left to score Benny Clark, III. After another walk to
Keith Tatum,
Tighe Koehring would knock in
Charlie Sipe to make it 2-0 Tech.
Peyton Newsom would then lead off the fourth with a double to center and coming around to score two batters later as Sipe ripped a double to left, with kick-started four straight hits to give the visitors a 6-0 lead over the Bulldogs.
It would be more than enough offense for
Cody Kellar, who pitched 5.2 scoreless innings to pick up the win, allowing five hits and striking out four, and
Jacob Koehring, who earned his first save of the season by throwing 3.1 scoreless innings, striking out six and allowing just one hit.
The Bulldogs would take the early lead in the second game with a run in the bottom of the first, but an error from the hosts would allow Clark III to score an unearned run in the third to tie the game. A leadoff homer from the Bulldogs would give TWU the lead right back though in the bottom of the inning.
Sipe would smash his second homer of the season to left center in the fifth, but once again the Bulldogs would respond with a run in the bottom of the inning. Newsom would knock in
Taylor Nychyk in the sixth to tie the game at three, but the hosts would draw a bases-loaded walk to take a 4-3 lead in the bottom of the inning and the Warriors would be looking at their final three outs of the game.
Two walks, two singles and a hit-batsman in the top of the seventh though, would give Tech a 5-4 lead, with
Dante Biagini scoring on a wild pitch and
Tighe Koehring knocking in the game-winning run with a single to left.
Zach Reid would close the door on the fourth-ranked Bulldogs with a pair of strikeouts to pick up the win as the Orange and Black completed the sweep.
Tech (9-3) returns to action on Thursday as they start a three-game series against regional rival Taylor with a doubleheader. First pitch is set for 3 p.m. from Winterholter Field.
