Four Teams Determined to Continue ODAC Baseball Tournament

May 06, 2019

FOREST, Va. --- Just two games were needed in all four best-of-three series for the second straight season as the four teams advancing to the double-elimination portion of the ODAC Baseball Tournament have been determined. Each of the original top-four seeds will head to Haley Toyota Field at Salem Memorial Ballpark next weekend, May 10-12, for the conclusion of the tournament that began this weekend with a trio of best-of-three series.

The field would have been reset following the four series, but with each of the top seeds advancing, a shuffle was not required. Top-seeded Randolph-Macon will be joined by #2 Roanoke, #3 Shenandoah, and #4 Virginia Wesleyan.

RELATED: 2019 Tournament Schedule/Results

Randolph-Macon (25-8-1) took two games from Eastern Mennonite (16-23-1) on Friday evening. In game one, Mike and Shawn Nickles drove in three runs each to go along with four RBI from Ryan Duphorn in the Yellow Jackets' 13-1 win. Nick Roth fanned eight batters in batters in seven frames with his lone mistake a solo shot surrendered to EMU's Jaylon Lee. Roth improved to 9-0 on the season.

It was more of the same in game two with Duphorn, Jeff Butler, and Zach Evans driving in a pair each in R-MC's 11-1 clinching victory. Butler and Shawn Nickles had three hits, the latter for the second straight game. Michael Zubovich moved to 8-0 on the season with six solid innings. He struck out four and scattered six hits allowing one run.

RELATED: R-MC vs. EMU Game 1 | R-MC vs. EMU Game 2

Roanoke's advancement past Lynchburg featured some drama on Friday. The Maroons trailed the Hornets throughout the contest as Avery Combs RBI single in the second inning accounted for the lone run until the ninth. With two down, RC's Hunter Andrews struck out swinging, but the ball sprayed clear of the catcher to allow Andrews to reach and, more importantly, pinch runner Tyler De Meo to cross the dish to tie the score 1-all. Extra baseball continued to the 12th inning when Cody Shell walked off the result with a single to right to drive in Will Merriken for a 2-1 RC victory.

Lynchburg starter Kinston Carson struck out 10 in nine innings in taking a no decision. RC's Kenny Mackovic worked the first six frames, while Cam Eck and Kevin Ledford relieved with three shutout innings each. Ledford improved to 4-0 with the win.

Game two on Sunday had a much different tenor as Roanoke scored eight runs over the first four innings on the way to an 11-3 clinching victory. Jack Howard drove in three runs while Andrews and Cale Agee plated two each. Cameron Lane had a three-hit day for the Hornets.

Connor Chiulli (3.2 IP), Pat Burke (2.0), and Cam Eck (3.1) combined to pitch RC to victory. Burke moved to 1-0 with the win, while Eck earned a three-inning save, his third of the season.

RELATED: RC vs. LYN Game 1 | RC vs. LYN Game 2

Shenandoah's two wins over Hampden-Sydney took a bit more time to decide with a 5-0 shutout on Saturday and a 7-6 nail-biter on Monday afternoon. Robert Klinchock went the distance in game one, improving to 6-4 while scattering nine hits and fanning four in nine innings. Frankie Ritter led offensively with three hits and four at bats.

Game two had a bit of back-and-forth to it with SU jumping ahead with three in the first. H-SC responded with three in the second. Both teams added a run in the third, while the Tigers took the lead, 6-4, with a pair in the fourth. Shenandoah responded immediately with two in top of the fifth and pushed across the game-decider in the seventh inning. Grant Thompson was one of four Hornets with multiple hits. He drove in a game-best three runs. Blake Hartman had three hits and pair of RBI for H-SC as the Tigers had four players with two or more hits.

Matt Barnes earned the win with 3.1 innings of shutout ball where he allowed one hit. Gerard DePhillips tied the ODAC and SU single-season records with his 11 save of the season.

RELATED: SU vs. H-SC Game 1 | SU vs. H-SC Game 2

Virginia Wesleyan starter Andrew Lowe was stellar in game one, scattering six hits with one walk to go with seven punchouts as he went the distance to lead the Marlins to a 2-0 win over Ferrum. Just two RBI singles were needed as Jacob Pilarski plated Dylan Gentry in the first and Brady Fallon brought home Zack Clark in the fourth. Ferrum starter Crew Callohan acquitted himself well in leading the Panthers in their first ODAC tournament game. He worked 8.0 frames in taking the loss, while Lowe improved to 5-3.

There was much more action in game two, highlighted by a six-run fourth inning to power VWU to an 8-5 win. Tyriq Campbell drove in four runs, while Jordan McDonough plated a pair. Daniel Petro homered among his two at bats. VWU starter Jacob Pilarski struck out 10 batters on the way to improving to 8-3 on the season. Jay Crusemire finished the game to collect his first save of the year.

RELATED: VWU vs. FC Game 1 | VWU vs. FC Game 2

Play in Salem is slated to begin on Friday, May 10. Randolph-Macon and Virginia Wesleyan will square off at 4:00 p.m. followed by Roanoke versus Shenandoah at 7:30 p.m. Three games will be played on Saturday to get down to the final two squads on Sunday. One of those teams will have two chances to win the title as it will not have lost yet in the double-elimination format.

For more information, visit the websites of the participating schools, or go the ODAC Baseball Tournament website. Don't forget to become a fan of the ODAC on Facebook and follow @odacathletics on Twitter and Instagram.