Bison swept by Thiel in doubleheader

Steve Janik, Assistant Sports Information Director

BETHANY, W.Va. (April 15) - The Bethany College baseball team dropped a Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) doubleheader to Thiel, 10-1 and 8-4 at Bethany Park on Saturday.

With the losses, Bethany falls to 10-16-1 overall and 5-10 in the PAC, while Thiel jumps to 16-9 on the year and 8-4 in the league.

Game One Thiel 10 Bethany 1

John Lee (Worthington, Ohio/Thomas Worthington), Tyler Frazee (Markleysburg, Pa./Uniontown), and Jacob Miller (Pickerington, Ohio/Pickerington North) recorded the three hits in game one with Lee scoring the lone run for Bethany. Starter Bill McLuckie (McMurray, Pa./Peters Township) went 5.1 innings scattering six hits, while allowing five runs (four earned) and striking out one. 

Thiel got a two-out RBI double to take advantage of an earlier Bison error grabbing the 1-0 lead in the top of the second. 

Bethany went on to tie it in their half of the fourth. The inning started with John Lee reaching on a called catcher's interference. Lee then reached third following a sacrifice bunt and a ground out. With two outs, a wild pitch brought Lee home to set the score at 1-1 after four complete innings.

After the one-run second inning, McLuckie threw four straight spotless frames, including retiring seven in a row. 

However, the Tomcats would force McLuckie from the game in the sixth, scoring four runs, highlighted by a two-RBI triple to left center, making the score 5-1. Thiel then tacked on five more runs in the seventh inning to take game one.

Game Two Thiel 8 Bethany 4

Jake Stemmerich (Latrobe, Pa./Greater Latrobe) led the team offensively going 2-for-3 with an RBI, while Adam Becker (McMurray, Pa./Peters Township) added a 1-for-3 day to go with two RBI. Starter Cody Gross (West Mifflin, Pa./West Mifflin) pitched five strong innings, allowing three runs on five hits, while fanning just two.

Through the first three innings of the second game, both pitchers battled on the hill, with Gross only allowing two hits and the Thiel starter Tanner Teconchuk not allowing a hit.

With two down in the bottom half of the fourth, Stemmerich broke up Teconchuk's no-hit bid and the scoreless game with a solo home run to left field, his first collegiate round tripper.

The Bison took that momentum into their next chance. Jake Miller led things off with a single to center to be sacrificed to second. Zack Miller (West Mifflin, Pa./West Mifflin) then dropped a bunt for a base hit, allowing Jake Miller to advance to third. A heads-up play by Zack Miller allowed him to move up to second on the same play with the defense not giving him any attention. Becker stepped up next and roped a single up the middle, scoring both Millers and increasing their lead to 3-0 after five.

Thiel then turned it over and took the lead with a big four-run sixth inning highlighted by a triple and double, consecutively, chasing Gross from the game. 

Woods came on to pitch the top of the seventh for Bethany and picked up two outs via punch out and a fly out before the Tomcats loaded the bases. A fly ball was hit to the wall in center but was dropped, allowing all three runs to score, unearned, making the score 8-3.

The Bison added one in their final at-bat but left the bases loaded to close out the game.

Next up, Bethany travels to Muskingum on Monday, April 17 for a doubleheader set to start at 1 p.m.