EMORY, Va. – The Randolph-Macon College Baseball Team (18-12, 12-5 ODAC) opened up for a total of 34 runs on the afternoon as it swept Emory & Henry College (9-21, 5-10 ODAC) in an Old Dominion Athletic Conference doubleheader at Porterfield/DeVault Field. The Yellow Jackets took game one by a 16-6 score and completed the sweep with an 18-11 victory in the nightcap.
Game One – Randolph-Macon 16, Emory & Henry 6
Emory & Henry drew first blood as senior catcher Connor Wise (Cookeville, Tenn.) drove in a run with a double in the bottom of the first inning.
Randolph-Macon scored four straight to take a lead it would never relinquish. Blake Saathoff got the Yellow Jackets started with a solo home run in the second and Tim Benjamin had a three-run shot in the third for the 4-1 lead.
The Wasps got the score to 4-2 on a double steal to score freshman centerfielder Matthew Whisnant (Connelly Springs, N.C.), who led off the inning reaching on an error by the third baseman.
R-MC then took control with 11 straight runs including an eight-run sixth frame. Benjamin got his second home run of the game, this time a grand slam as part of the sixth inning, making the score 15-2.
E&H scored four runs in the final three innings of the game. Whisnant had a pair of RBI doubles to right centerfield while Wise plated a pair in the eighth with a home run to left field. The Yellow Jackets got their final run of the game in the eighth as Saathoff hit a sacrifice fly to foul territory in right field.
Randolph-Macon had 15 hits in the game as six different players notched multi-hit games. Benjamin plated seven runs on two hits with two runs scored while Nick Maiolo was two-for-six with three runs and two RBI. Daniel Byrd picked up the win, allowing just two runs on five hits with three strikeouts in five innings of work. James Walsh earned the save, allowing four runs in the final four innings of the game.
Wise was two-for-four with three RBI and a run scored while Whisnant plated two on his two-for-four game. Junior left-hander Aaron Sparks (Troutman, Va.) suffered the loss, allowing nine earned runs on 12 hits while striking out five.
Game Two – Randolph-Macon 18, Emory & Henry 11
The Yellow Jackets scored in each of the final six innings of the nightcap, rallying from two different deficits to complete the day's sweep.
E&H got on the board in the first. Senior second baseman Caleb Rotton (Boiling Springs, S.C.) doubled to start the scoring while Wise plated a run when he grounded into a double play.
Mitch Keeler started things off for Randolph-Macon with a solo home run in the top of the fourth. The Yellow Jackets took a 5-2 lead in the fifth on five hits.
In the bottom of the fifth, Emory & Henry sent 12 batters to the plate, scoring seven runs on seven hits and an error. Junior shortstop Jordan Woullard (Oak Ridge, Tenn.) had a two-run double down the left field line to highlight the frame, giving the Wasps a 9-5 lead.
Randolph-Macon erased the lead with five runs in the sixth and never looked back. Christian Sanderson hit a three-run home run down the right field line in the seventh and Maiolo put three runs on the board on his eighth-inning round tripper. The Yellow Jackets added two final runs in the ninth for an 18-9 lead.
Emory & Henry got a pair of runs in the bottom of the ninth for the final 18-11 score. Sophomore left fielder Ben Barnett (Knoxville, Tenn.) drove in a run on a single down the right field line while sophomore third baseman Matthew McInaw (Honey Brook, Pa.) hit a sacrifice fly to centerfield for the other run.
Maiolo was three-for-five with five RBI and a run scored while Sanderson went four-for-five with four RBI and four runs. Jake Bram picked up the win in relief, scattering two hits over four innings of work with one strikeout.
Junior first baseman Bransen Christopher (Hickory, N.C.) was three-for-five with a run scored while Woullard was two-for-five with two runs and two RBI. Freshman Garrett Butler (Knoxville, Tenn.) suffered the loss, allowing seven runs on five hits and three walks in relief.
Emory & Henry will remain at home on Sunday afternoon as it hosts Guilford College in a single ODAC contest. First pitch is set for 2:00 p.m.
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