LEXINGTON, Va. – The Washington and Lee baseball team split a Saturday twinbill against ODAC opponent Hampden-Sydney; the hometeam took the second contest 4-1 after a first game dropped 6-1.
The Generals (14-12, 8-8 ODAC) rebounded the game-one loss by putting up four runs in four different innings in game two after falling behind to Hampden-Sydney (16-15, 9-7) 1-0 in the top of the first.
Sophomore left fielder Christian Lancaster sacrificed himself in a run-down and allowed senior shortstop Ryan Boyce to score and the Tigers failed to plate a run for the remainder of the contest. W&L quickly tied the game with a second-inning solo shot by first-year third baseman Nick Lagges (Chicago, Ill./Lane Tech). The match remained 1-1 until the bottom of the fifth where the Generals took the lead, a lead they held onto for the remainder of the game. Following a lead-off triple by senior center fielder Mitchell Salvino (Charlotte, N.C./Charlotte Catholic), senior left fielder Zach Perkins (Vienna, Va./James Madison) skied a ball to left field allowing Salvino to score.
W&L added a pair of insurance runs in the sixth and eighth pushing the score to 4-1.
Sophomore pitcher Evan Blair (Vienna, Va./James Madison) (2-0) made his first start for the Generals and took advantage of the opportunity. Blair pitched a complete game, the first of the year for the Generals, he allowed just one run on four hits and punched out three in the process. The most recent complete game for the Generals came from then-sophomore pitcher Thomas Haller (Round Hill, Va./Woodgrove) on April 24th, 2022, against Ferrum College.
Sophomore pitcher Gavin Gregory (4-2) received the loss for the Tigers after a five-inning performance where he allowed three runs on six hits.
H-SC had more control in game one where they plated six runs on just five hits while holding the Generals to one run on seven hits. The lone run for the Generals came off of an RBI single down the right field line by sophomore catcher Campbell Charneco (Clifton, Va./Centreville), scoring Perkins.
The Tigers' Owen Tappy (5-1) earned the game-one win for the Tigers after pitching a complete game of his own. Tappy allowed just one run on seven hits and struck out six Generals.
Sophomore pitcher John Benner (McLean, Va./St. Albans) (5-3) had a strong game-one outing; Benner pitched seven innings and allowed one earned run on three hits.
Leading the way at the plate for the Generals was Salvino who ended the day going 4-for-9 with two doubles and a triple. Charneco and junior second baseman Jacob Jackson (Norfolk, Va./Maury) both finished with three hits of their own. Lagged went 2-for-4 in game two including the solo homer.
H-SC totaled nine runs with two Tigers ending with a multi-hit day. Boyce went 2-for-8 with a stolen base, and junior center fielder Trent Jones went 2-for-3 in game one, scoring twice.
The Generals wrapped up their 11-game homestand and head on the road to face the Shenandoah Hornets on Wednesday at 4:00 p.m.
-generalssports.com-
