Baseball Splits Multi-Opponent Doubleheader

Saturday, March 16

Upland, IN

12:00 p.m.

Purdue Fort Wayne

Taylor

IPFW

Taylor (IN)

Photo by: Lucas Carter

3/17/2013 1:54:00 AM | Baseball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

BOX SCORE vs TAYLOR (.pdf) | BOX SCORE vs BALL STATE (.pdf)

UPLAND, Ind. - The IPFW Mastodons split a multi-opponent doubleheader, beating Taylor 7-5 before falling 4-3 to the Ball State Cardinals.

Kevin Wirth and Tyler Shepherd each went 3-for-8 for IPFW on the day, as Kristian Gayday drove in three, and Wirth two. Wirth, Malcom White, and Markus Kalber each scored twice on the day.

Against the Taylor Trojans, Chick Weaver picked up the win, pitching five innings, scattering four hits and striking out nine.

The Mastodons scored a run in each of the first two innings, the first of the runs coming when Gayday singled home White in the top of the first inning. An inning later, Brandon Soat doubled to left center, scoring Shane Trevino, and giving IPFW a 2-0 lead.

Taylor cut the deficit in half with a run in the bottom of the second inning.

A run in the top of the fourth came when Shepherd hit a sacrifice fly that scored Wirth, while IPFW added another in the sixth on a Gayday single that scored Markus Kalber.

Two runs in the seventh on a Wirth single, and another in the top of the eighth before Gayday scored on an error by the Trojan pitcher in the eighth to give IPFW a 7-1 lead.

The Trojans fought back and scored four times in the bottom of the eighth, but could not take the lead, as the Mastodons held on for a 7-5 win, with Connor Lawhead picking up his second safe of the season with a perfect bottom of the ninth inning.

Four players, Gayday, Steve Lowdon, Brandon Soat, and Wirth had two hits in the win, while Gayday and Wirth each drove in two.

In the afternoon finale against Ball State, the Mastodons scored one run in three seperate innings, before the Cardinals scored the game's final run in the bottom of the ninth inning for the BSU win.

IPFW struck first in the top of the second inning when Caleb Fenimore and Wirth successfully converted a double-steal, in which Fenimore stole home for his first stolen base of the season.

Ball State evened the score with a run in the bottom of the third, before the Mastodons re-took the lead in the top of the fifth when Lowden doubled home White, pushing IPFW ahead 2-1.

After the Cardinals took a one-run, 3-2 lead in the bottom of the seventh inning, IPFW knotted the score in the top of the ninth when Evan VanSumeren walked to load the bases with one out. Gayday proceeded to fly out to center field, scoring Markus Kalber.

The Mastodons sat down the first two Ball State batters with ease, before a single an error, and an intentional walk put runners on the corners, before a single followed to end the game with the 4-3 Ball State win.

Shepherd and Markus Kalber each had two hits in the loss, as Travis Reboulet picked up the loss, pitching the final three and a third inning, scattering six hits and giving up the three runs.

The Mastodons return to action on Sunday, March 17 when the squad will face off against the Cardinals at Bishop Chatard High School at 1 p.m.

~ Feel the Rumble ~