LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Spalding baseball hosted St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SLIAC) opponent Eureka College on Saturday. SU grabbed a sweep and became SLIAC Regular Season Champions.
The Golden Eagles, with their exceptional performance, moved to an impressive 26-10 (16-0 SLIAC), while the Red Devils, despite their efforts, fell to 18-18 (7-9 SLIAC).
GAME ONE - SPALDING 14, EUREKA 4
Both teams started slowly. The game was scoreless as it reached the top of the third. Eureka got on the board first. However, with a quick response, the Golden Eagles turned the game around in the bottom of the third.
Jacob Spanyer hit a single up the middle and tallied two RBIs.
Evan Fisher hit a sacrifice fly to the right field. This pushed Spalding ahead, 3-1. A mistake by the pitcher and a single by
Hunter Strong gave SU a big cushion, 5-1.
Strong smacked a two-run homer to left field in the bottom of the sixth.
Caden Krystofiak continued his impressive outing and tallied 10 strikeouts. In the top of the eighth, the Red Devils grabbed three runs of their own, closing the lead, 7-4. Once again, the Golden Eagles gained momentum in the bottom of the eighth.
Slade West started scoring by drawing a walk and earning an RBI.
Whitt Callahan snagged two RBIs off of a single to left-center field. Eureka went on to give up back-to-back runs off of wild pitches. This advanced SU's lead 12-4.
Michael Speck got the mercy for Spalding. He singled to left field, sending two Golden Eagle players home. Spalding took the win in the bottom of the eighth inning, 14-4.
GAME TWO - SPALDING 9, EUREKA 0
Matthew McDowell got SU rolling at the bottom of the first. He singled through the right side and sent
Ethan Tuttle home. Tuttle tallied himself a perfect game, going 5/5 and scoring four runs. Spanyer followed with an RBI double to left field. Callahan ended the inning with a sacrifice fly RBI. SU was winning at the end of the first, 3-0.
SU kept things going in the bottom of the second. McDowell tallied another RBI to begin the second inning, giving SU a 4-0 lead.
Neither team could score until the bottom of the fifth.
Cameron Rayborn had an amazing day on the mound. He pitched five innings, tallied six strikeouts, and gave up zero runs. Callahan, once again, snagged an RBI off of a sacrifice fly. SU used their momentum for the remainder of the game. Strong tallied two more RBIs, and the Red Devils gave up two runs off of errors. SU went on to win this one, 9-0.
GOLDEN EAGLE NOTES
- SU clinched their first outright SLIAC Regular Season Title.
- Spalding continued to impress in SLIAC play with 16 straight wins.
- Ethan Tuttle hit 8-9 (.889 batting average) on the weekend.
- Caden Krystofiak pitched seven innings and earned 10 strikeouts.
NEXT FOR SPALDING
Spalding will travel to Hanover College on Tuesday, April 30th. The first pitch will take place at 4 p.m.
