LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Spalding baseball took care of some spring cleaning with a St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SLIAC) sweep of visiting Eureka College.

The Golden Eagles moved to 15-5 overall and 4-2 in the SLIAC with the 11-1, 3-1, and 11-1 wins over the weekend.

GAME ONE – SPALDING 11, EUREKA 1
Spalding gave Eureka everything it had in game one of the series.

Matthew McDowell got the scoring going with a sacrifice fly in the second inning. That was followed by a Hunter Strong two-RBI double and a Jacob Spanyer RBI single.

The third inning proved to be even more explosive for the home team. Doubles from McDowell and Strong, as well as a Spanyer single, brought five runners in. The Golden Eagles kept the Red Devils scoreless and hitless through four frames.

Eureka scored their lone run on a solo homer in the top of the fifth. Spalding answered the score in the bottom of the inning when Michael Newsom scored on a wild pitch after walking, stealing second, and making it to third on a McDowell sacrifice fly.

The Golden Eagles hit the run rule mark in celebratory fashion with a Nicholas Salas leadoff home run in the bottom of the second bringing the game to a 11-1 end.

GAME TWO – SPALDING 3, EUREKA 1
Spalding had double-digit hits in the second game, but the game stayed tight the whole way through.

The Red Devils scored their only run of the game in the top of the second thanks to an RBI single up the middle. The Golden Eagles tied the contest in the bottom of the third frame on a Spanyer RBI single that scored McDowell.

A fielding error by the EC third baseman scored what ended up being the winning run in the fifth. A Strong RBI single added an insurance run in the 3-1 SU win.

GAME THREE – SPALDING 11, EUREKA 1
The final game of the series started similarly to the second, with Eureka scoring first. IT then started to feel like game one when the Spalding bats got hot in the fifth inning.

A Whitt Callahan double and a Newsom walk set McDowell up for a 2 RBI triple to put the Golden Eagles up one. SU put up another two runs in the sixth and another in the seventh.

Spalding came into the eighth inning hot to put away the game. Two doubles, a bases-loaded walk, and a score on a ground out brought in a total of six runs during the frame to secure the second 11-1 win of the series.

GOLDEN EAGLE NOTES

• Jacob Spanyer went 2-for-3 in the first game with two RBI, while Matthew McDowell led the contest with four runs batted in.
• Hunter Strong had three RBI in game one with Nicholas Salas tacking on one.
• In the second game, Michael Speck led with a 3-for-4 performance at the plate. Both Strong and Spanyer had one RBI in the game.
• Both McDowell and Michael Newsom went 3-for-4 in the final game. McDowell and Speck each had three RBI in the last game of the series.
• In the first game, Caleb Collins earned the start and the win on the mound. He pitched all seven innings and struck out eight batters. He allowed three hits and just one run.
• Clay Burton got the start in game two and allowed four hits and one run over three full innings. Wesley Clark spent the final six innings on the mound and earned the win with just one hit surrendered and no runs scored. He struck out eight batters.
• Three pitchers spent time on the mound for the Golden Eagles in the final game. Garrett Mathews got the start and pitched two innings. He was followed by Caden Krystofiak who pitched three and ⅔ innings and allowed just two hits and one run in his win. Jake Mueller closed out the final two and 1/3 innings of the game and allowed no runs on two hits. 

NEXT FOR SPALDING
Spalding welcomes Greenville to Derby City Field for a weekend series starting Friday. First pitch is set for 6 p.m. Friday with a Saturday doubleheader set to start at 1 p.m.