Mitchell Kuebbing, Allen Ellis and Luke Simpson all got pitching wins for the Lancers this past weekend as the squad evened its overall season record at 4-4 going into today’s game against in-state opponent George Mason University at 3 p.m. at Charles Buddy Bolding Stadium.
Matt Dickason (.400) and Brandon Delk (.355) have been the catalysts for the Lancers so far on the offensive side of the bat. Sophomore pitcher Travis Burnette has been dominating in late game situations, which has allowed him to rack up three saves so far this season, as well as a 0.00 ERA in four appearances.
In Friday’s game, some of the younger Lancers stepped up to ensure a win, as freshman Brandon Harvell had three hits, sophomore C.J. Roth had two hits and an RBI, and freshman Mac McCafferty added a hit and an RBI as well.
Kuebbing, also a freshman, picked up his first collegiate victory in Friday’s match-up going 5.0 scoreless innings in a relief appearance, while Burnette picked up the save.
Saturday produced a double-header between the two teams which the Lancers ended up sweeping by scores of 16-4, and 3-2. Delk was the obvious standout in the first game, going an astonishing 4-5 with 5 RBI and a grand slam. The Lancers took the lead in the seventh after trailing for most of the game with three runs on four hits making the score 5-4, and never looked back. In the eighth the team broke it open, scoring 11 runs on eight hits including Delk’s four-run blast which gave the Lancers a 16-4 lead. Simpson, also a freshman, got the relief win after pitching just 1.0 inning.
In game two, sophomore Ellis picked up the pitching win, and was dominating, going 8.0 innings with six strikeouts and two earned runs. On the offensive side, the Lancers only had five hits over the course of the game, but it was enough as the Lancers went walk, sacrifice bunt, single, single in the bottom of the eighth inning to cement a sweep on the day. Scott Burkett (2-3) led the Lancers in game two with two hits, while sophomore Kyri Washington (1-3) had the game-winning hit for the Lancers. Delk (3 HR), the Lancers’ clean-up hitter, tweaked his left shoulder during his first at bat in the second game on Saturday and was forced into limited play the rest of the weekend; his status for tonight’s game is unknown.
Sunday, the teams played the fourth and final game of the series, which was a much different script than the previous three games as the Lancers took their first loss of the weekend, 4-2.
Junior Brandon Vick took the loss, allowing nine hits, and four runs (two earned), over the first seven innings. Freshman Devin Gould came on in the eighth and tossed two scoreless for the Lancers, but it was too little, too late. The Lancers’ bats were quiet for the first time all weekend, as only McCafferty (2-3) had more than one hit.
After tonight’s matchup with GMU, the Lancers will hit the road for a weekend series against Wofford College in Spartanburg, SC before welcoming William & Mary next Wednesday during spring break.
