Richmond, Ind. – The Wittenberg baseball team took the road to play the final two games with the Quakers of Earlham, falling in both games 5-2 in the first and 9-5 in the finale. The Tigers collected nine hits on the day, keeping a clean sheet through the first game without making an error. The final two games of the series were set to be two nine-inning games but were decided to be played as two seven-inning games upon arrival.

GAME ONE

After the home team took an early 3-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning. The Quakers added to their lead in the second to go up 4-0. The Wittenberg offense came alive in the second inning starting with a David Hamrick leadoff walk to start the inning. Hamrick would come around to score on the Matt Baker RBI double. After Baker advanced on the Gabe Stacy line out. Patrick Kenny brought in the second Wittenberg run with an RBI single. Jace Barga took the mound for Wittenberg to start the game, putting in four innings of work facing 21 Earlham hitters. Barga allowed eight hits striking out five, making way for Brandon Beegle to throw two innings of relief. Beegle allowed one hit and sat down four of eight batters faced.

GAME TWO

The Tigers claimed an early 3-0 lead in the top of the second inning. After Jack Siefert took an inside pitch for a free base, followed by Jack Hollinshead reaching on an errant Earlham throw. The first two Wittenberg runs would cross the plate after Hamrick cracked a triple past the Quaker defense. A Ryan Probst sacrifice fly would drive in Hamrick for the third Tiger run of the second inning. Earlham would match the Wittenberg offense from the second inning, adding three more in the third taking a 6-3 advantage. Jeremey McAleese got the offense going again in the fourth inning with a walk, before advancing on the Earlham wild pitch. McAleese advanced to third on the Stacy fly out to right. After reaching on the walk, Baker advanced to second on the Earlham wild pitched as McAleese came in for the fourth Wittenberg run. Going into the sixth inning trailing 8-4, Tim Bates would be the first Tiger to reach safely with a single through the Quaker defense. Siefert plated the final Wittenberg run lacing a double past the Earlham defense, scoring Bates in the top of the sixth. Jordan Jolly took the hill to start the final game of the series, facing 16 batters, allowing two hits and striking out three. Andrew Goodpaster faced eleven hitters and Tanner Boros faced three in their appearances, before Andrew Juelg and Parker Tietz made way to close out the game.

UP NEXT: Wittenberg will return to action on Monday, March 5 when they travel to North Carolina Wesleyan for the first of three games starting at 2:30 PM.