ROCK HILL, S.C. – The Longwood baseball team continued its historic pace, winning 30 games in a season for the first time in the program's nine-year Division I era with a 12-3 series-clinching rout of Winthrop Saturday afternoon at Winthrop Ballpark.
 
Several Lancers put together huge offensive days, including a seven-run rally in the third inning. The Lancers picked up 10 consecutive hits in the third and scored seven runs in the inning. Longwood laced 22 knocks in the game.
 
"What an effort offensively. We got production from everyone in the lineup and to explode like we did with 10 consecutive hard hits; I've never seen anything like it," Longwood head coach Ryan Mau said. "It was just a great day for our team, a great day for our program achieving 30 wins, and it was nice to do it in that fashion today."

Bolstered by a 4-for-6 day from sophomore shortstop Michael Osinski and a 2-for-5, three-RBI performance from junior outfielder Drew Kitson, the Lancers (30-21, 14-9 Big South) exploded for a season-high 22 hits to win their second straight Big South series. The offensive onslaught, which included an RBI from seven different players, backed 6.2 innings of one-run ball from Luke Simpson (1-3), who held the sixth-place Eagles to just six hits.
 
"[Simpson] threw the ball well," Mau said. "He got into a little bit of trouble in the first inning, but we were able to execute a pick off and a rundown to end the inning. It was a momentum shift and a killer for them. Simpson got stronger as the game went on, firing zeros up there, and I thought he looked good."
 
The Lancer pitching staff held Winthrop to just eight hits in the win, none allowed by Tyler Wirsu, who retired all four batters faced.
 
"I though Tyler Wirsu did a great job at the end of the ballgame putting it away," Mau said.

The win secures Longwood's hold on a top-four seeding in the Big South Championship, which will be the program's highest finish since joining the league in 2013. The Lancers have won five of their past six games and will have a chance at their second straight Big South sweep Sunday at 2 p.m.

Winthrop (26-23, 10-10 Big South) had no answer for Longwood's offense Saturday, allowing a hit to all nine starters, including seven who tagged multiple base knocks. The Lancers scored all 12 runs in the first four innings, including the game-breaking, seven-run third inning in which freshman catcher Carlos Garrido picked up two hits.
 
"We applied pressure right out of the gate and got their starter out of the game, which is always our goal," Mau said. "Garrido executed a suicide squeeze to put the second run on the board. We stuck with the game plan and stuck with the approach. We got that start early on and continued to go to work on the bullpen."

Garrido was one of four Lancers with three-plus hits on the day, finishing 3-for-5 with a pair of RBI. Connar Bastaich went 3-for-6 and Alex Lewis 3-for-5 to contribute to a top-of-the-lineup combination that saw Longwood's top four hitters combine for 12 hits.
 
"It was a collaborative effort today," Mau said. "I'm proud of our program and what we've accomplished up to this point, but there's still more work to do."

Sunday's series finale will also be the final Big South game of the regular season for the Lancers, who return to non-conference action at Appalachian State next weekend for their final games before the start of the Big South Tournament March 24-28 in Lexington, S.C. First pitch Sunday is set for 2 p.m. at Winthrop Ballpark.

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