Two game-winning singles by outfielder Dylan Schuch gave the St. Edward's baseball team a series sweep over Lincoln on Sunday at Lucian-Hamilton Field.
St. Edward's (5-2, 5-2 HC trailed Lincoln (0-7, 0-7 HC) into the bottom of the seventh by at least three runs in both games before mounting its comebacks.
In game one, the Hilltopper hitters faced down a tough starting pitcher in the Blue Tigers' Chris Pfau. The Hilltoppers managed to strike first in the top of the first inning off of a single down the left field line by designated hitter Daniel Rufini. But Pfau quickly settled in and went on to strike out eight Hilltopper hitters without allowing a run for the next five innings.
Meanwhile, Lincoln (0-7, 0-7 HC) was able to score one run off of Stephen Johnson in the third inning on a passed ball and a throwing error by catcher Adam Wolotira. Johnson left in the fifth inning with two runners on base. Both runners went on to score.
Pfau faltered in the seventh inning against fresh Hilltopper hitters. First, pinch hitter Jeremy Houser reached base on a fielding error by third baseman Brian Patrick. Then, pinch hitter Drew Kimball singled to right-center field. Right fielder Sean Hilbe's sacrifice bunt advanced the runners to second and third. With first baseman Dexter Moreno coming to the plate, the Blue Tigers turned to relief pitcher Justin Forsythe. But Forsythe could not retire Moreno, who knocked a double into right-center, driving in two runs to tie the game, 3-3. Rufini moved Moreno to third on a ground ball, leaving Dylan Schuch, who had come in during the previous inning as a pinch runner, up at the plate with two outs and the winning run 90 feet away. Schuch quickly went down in the count, 0-2, but fouled off several pitches before smacking a line-drive into right field to score Moreno, winning the game 4-3.
Moreno went 3-for-4 in the first game while Hilbe went 1-for-2 with a walk and a stolen base. Jonathan Burns picked up the win after a lights-out performance in relief. Forsythe (0-1) received the loss.
In the second game, the Blue Tigers looked to avenge their late-inning loss, scoring four runs in the top of the first inning off of Hilltopper starting pitcher Landon Patterson. While three of the runs were unearned, two scored as a result of an errant pickoff throw from Patterson.
The Hilltoppers picked up a run in the bottom half of the inning after center fielder Chandler Mosser lead off with a triple and then scored on a passed ball. However, the Hilltoppers did not score again in the inning and left three runners stranded.
Brad Nasis came in to pitch in the second inning for the Hilltoppers and held the Blue Tigers scoreless for two innings. Nasis faced trouble in the third and surrendered an unearned run before
he exited the game. Relievers Matthew Anderson and Dustin Johnson surrendered five more runs in the next three innings to seemingly put the game out of reach for the Hilltoppers with a strong pitching performance by Blue Tiger starting pitcher James Johndrow keeping the Hilltopper hitters off-balance.
The Hilltoppers scored another run after a passed ball in the fourth inning and again off of an Adam Shank sacrifice fly in the fifth, but could not string together a big inning to pull closer to the Blue Tigers. However, in the sixth inning, the Hilltoppers' patient hitters took advantage of a pitching change by the Blue Tigers and scored three runs off of just one hit and one error thanks to free bases. Still, the Hilltoppers could not close the deficit, stranding three runners.
Another shutdown relief appearance by Burns got the Hilltoppers to the bottom of the seventh inning down, 10-6. From there, it was déjà vu all over again for the Blue Tigers, as Kimball and Houser found themselves on the base paths again. Nic Godre then walked to load the bases. Sean Hilbe was then hit by a pitch to drive in a run. Lincoln turned again to Saturday's game one starter Dustin Bess to mitigate the damage, but a wild pitch and a passed ball allowed two runs to score. Rufini drove in a run off of a groundout to first. With the game tied, in stepped Schuch. This time, Schuch drilled a line drive into center field, scoring pinch runner Win Smith from second to win the game.
Burns (2-0) picked up his second win of the day. Bess (0-3) received the loss for Lincoln.
The Hilltopper hitters were shut down for most of the second game, and no player had more than one hit, but the team effort helped the Hilltoppers score 11 runs. Despite not having an official plate appearance, Houser scored two runs. Hilbe also scored two runs and had one hit in three at-bats. The Hilltoppers were walked 11 times and another four runners were hit by pitches.
The Hilltoppers will now head on the road to play Heartland Conference rival St. Mary's in San Antonio on Friday. The first pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m.