WISE, Va. – A last-minute change in venue didn't slow down Wright State, the preseason favorites in the Horizon League, against Longwood baseball on opening day.
After a winter storm forced Longwood (0-2) and Wright State (2-0) to play at UVA Wise's Burchell Stallard Stadium this weekend instead of at Buddy Bolding Stadium, the visitors got going quickly and used timely hitting to take down Longwood 12-1 and 14-8.
Myles Webb had a pair of RBI doubles on the day for Longwood, and
James Nelson added an RBI triple, but the high-powered offense of Wright State, coupled with costly mistakes that extended innings, proved too much to overcome.
"It was great to be out there with the guys today for opening day," said Longwood Head Coach
Ray Noe. "I thought we settled into teh flow of the game after some early jitters and nerves, but I was happy with how we competed all day. Being able to come back out after a game one loss and put up a six-spot in the first inning in game two is a testament to our players' ability to be present in teh moment and handle the ebbs and flows of college baseball. I'm really proud of their response and think it will pay dividends as the season progresses."
Game 1: Wright State 12, Longwood 1
Wright State's offense got rolling early, ripping off six runs in the first two innings thanks in part to a handful of Longwood miscues that led to six unearned runs.
Returning All-Horizon Leaguer Boston Smith homered twice, and fellow All-Horizon League returner Patrick Fultz added three base knocks and three RBIs of his own.
Griffen Paige led a Wright State pitching staff that kept the Lancer offense off balance. Paige had seven of his team's 15 strikeouts.
The Lancers did get on the board with a perfectly executed double steal late in the contest, but the damage was done by that time.
Warren Harzell earned the win for Wright State by pitching the fifth inning. He completed two innings of scoreless work while striking out three against one hit and one walk.
Alek Elges took the tough luck loss, giving up seven runs with only one an earned run. He struck out three in 3.2 innings of work against seven hits and two walks.
Caleb Grizzard made his Longwood debut and struck out five in 2.1 solid innings while giving up one run on one hit.
Game 2: Wright State 14, Longwood 8
The Lancers blasted out of the gates in the first inning of game two, but a steady stream of offense helped Wright State whittle down the early Lancer lead.
After the Raiders scored in the top of the first, the Lancers ripped off six runs in the home half of the inning and chased starter Brayden Schoetzow in the process.
Myles Webb, a transfer from Randolph-Macon, roped a two-run double to right field to get Longwood on the board for a 2-1 lead. A wild pitch added another run, and
James Nelson walloped a two-run triple to make it 5-1.
Jacob Moore capped the inning with a sacrifice fly for the 6-1 advantage.
However, Wright State proceeded to trickle home runs in each of the next four innings thanks, in part, to Lancer miscues that extended innings. Will Cook, Luke Arnold and JP Peltier all homered in that stretch to take an 11-6 lead through four-and-a-half.
Webb answered for Longwood with his second RBI double of the day, and
Carter Newman added an RBI groundout to cut it to 11-8 one batter later.
That was as close as Longwood would get though, as the duo of Cam Allen and Garrett Peters combined for five scoreless frames to close out the game.
Allen, who came on in the fifth and got out of a jam, earned the win for Wright State. He struck out two against two walks without giving up a run in two scoreless frames. Peters tossed three scoreless to earn the three-inning save while striking out five.
Guillermo Garcia took the loss for Longwood. He gave up eight runs, five earned, on seven hits.
The Lancers play the final game of the series on Saturday at 1 p.m.
#GoWood #HorsePower
