April 2, 2016

Grove City sweeps Westminster

GROVE CITY, Pa. -- The Grove City College baseball team improved to 15-5 overall and 7-1 in the Presidents' Athletic Conference by sweeping a conference doubleheader Saturday afternoon from visiting Westminster at R. Jack Behringer Field. Grove City rolled to an 8-2 win in the opener and then prevailed 9-2 in Game Two.

Junior first baseman Matt Waugaman (Wexford, Pa./North Allegheny) paced Grove City in the opener by drilling a pair of solo homers and knocking in four total runs. Like Waugaman, junior shortstop David Laylock (Mars, Pa./Pine-Richland) also went 3 for 4 and scored twice.

Freshman left fielder Shane Hammel (Fort Collins, Colo./Fossil Ridge) doubled and singled for the Wolverines while junior catcher Andy Fritz (Saxonburg, Pa./Knoch) and freshman third baseman Micah Burke (Gilbert, Ariz./E.V.A.C.) both went 2 for 4. Senior DH Travis Royer (Forest, Va./Twin Valley, Pa.) added a double in the victory.

Hammel doubled in Royer to start Grove City's three-run second inning. Laylock also had a run-scoring single while an error led to Grove City's third run. In the fourth, Laylock laced a run-scoring single before the first of Waugaman's two homers. Waugaman closed the scoring with a two-run blast in the sixth.

Freshman pitcher John Bini (Staten Island, N.Y./Xaverian) earned the win by pitching six innings. Bini (5-0) allowed one earned run. Senior reliever Kenny Saltsman (Salem, Ohio/Salem) struck out two men in the seventh.

In Game Two, winning pitcher Cameron Lawson (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Hills) took a no-hitter into the fifth. Lawson, a junior, struck out five over 5 2/3 innings. He allowed two earned runs and three hits, improving to 2-2. Junior Nolan Myers (Landisville, Pa./Hempfield) retired all four batters he faced in relief.

Burke went 4 for 4 with two doubles and two runs scored while Hammel and Waugaman each went 2 for 4. Fritz scored three times.

Royer's bases-loaded walk in the first inning gave Grove City a 1-0 lead while Hammel followed with a two-run single that drove in Fritz and Burke. Grove City scored twice more in the third, fourth and fifth innings. Freshman left fielder Travis Auth (Medina, Ohio/Medina) highlighted the fifth with a run-scoring single.

At 15-5, Grove City is off to its best start since 2006, when Grove City also opened 15-5. Grove City's 7-1 league record is the best in program history through eight games.

Grove City hosts Hiram in non-conference action Tuesday at 3:30 p.m.

Game One Box Score            Game Two Box Score

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