ELON, N.C. – Robbie Welhaf threw the first no-hitter in the Division-I era for Elon as the Phoenix toppled Longwood, 7-0, Saturday afternoon at Latham Park.
Welhaf (1-0) issued a one-out walk to
Justin Mitchell in the second inning and hit
Carlos Garrido with a pitch in the eighth inning as he cruised the rest of the way, facing one above the minimum in the Elon (2-0) win. Welhaf struck out eight Longwood (0-2) batters in the performance.
"It was obviously a very tough day for us," Longwood head coach
Ryan Mau said. "Welhaf had plus command of his fastball and mixed in his off-speed when needed. We failed to make the offensive adjustments necessary and allowed him to settle in early and stay settled in."
Welhaf cruised for the majority of the game, not allowing a runner in seven of nine innings pitched and faced the minimum eight times.
Welhaf got plenty of run support in the win, with a three-run second inning that provided all the offense needed for Elon. Ryne Ogren led the way offensively in a 3-for-4 game with a double, while Will Nance scored a pair of runs in a 2-for-4 game.
Senior right-hander
Devin Gould (0-1) took the loss for the Lancers after allowing five runs, three earned, in 3.2 innings of work. Gould struck out five batters, but issued three walks and allowed five hits. The Lancers threw three wild pitches and committed three errors in the loss.
"We made a few defensive mistakes and they capitalized on them," Mau said. "We have to limit the freebies and find a way to avoid giving up the big inning."
Elon's three-run second inning started on back-to-back doubles by Nance and Cam Devanney. After a fly out and advancement by Devanney to third base, a walk by Liam O'Regan allowed Elon to execute a double steal. A throwing error put O'Regan on third and he later scored on a single by Zach Evers.
Elon scored one run in each of the next four innings, with only the fifth inning being as the result of more than two hits.
Longwood turns to senior right-hander
Tyler Wirsu Sunday as the Lancers look to avoid the sweep. Elon turns to right-handed pitcher Kyle Brnovich for the start. First pitch is set for 1:30 p.m. Sunday afternoon at Latham Park.
#GoWood
