Baseball dethrones Knights in weekend AAC sweep

GRAYSON, Ky. (March 26, 2023) – The Point University baseball team played a weekend road series against Kentucky Christian University and would come away with the sweep. The Skyhawks would win Game 1, 17-11 on Saturday and would play a doubleheader on Sunday. In Game 2 of the series they would win, 2-0 (11 innings) and win Game 3, 10-1.

Game 1 (Saturday, March 25) – 17-11 WIN

In a game that would have the wind blowing out towards center field at 22-26 mph, the Skyhawks would come up victorious in the slugfest by a score of 17-11. Alex Marquand would get the scoring started with his two-run home run that would also score Kaleb Podger to make it 2-0. The Knights would get one run back in the bottom of the first to make it 2-1n the top of the second, Podger would double down the left field line to score both Sam Baker and Jackson Bush to make it 4-0. Jhamante Woods would single to score Kaleb Podger to make it 5-0. Zeb Baird would also single, scoring Brett Cambell to make it 6-0. Lastly in the second, Noah Watkins would walk and Woods would score giving the Skyhawks a commanding 7-0 lead. The Knights would cut the lead of the Skyhawks in the bottom of the third when they scored four runs to make it 7-5.  Chase Tolbert would hit a sacrifice fly to right field to score Slade Mink to make it 8-5 after the top of the fourth. The Knights would tie the game up at 8-8 in the bottom of the fourth. The Skyhawks offense would explode again in the top of the fifth when they would score four runs to regain the lead at 12-8. Slade Mink would get the scoring started in the fifth when he would double to left field scoring Brett Campbell to make it 9-8. Jhamante Woods would double to center field to score Mink to make it 10-8. Zeb Baird would add another double when he would go to center field to score Woods to make it 11-8. The double party would keep going when Chase Tolbert would double to right field to score Baird to make it 12-8. In the seventh Brett Campbell would score on a wild pitch to make it 13-8. Later in the seventh, Jaysen Dower would walk, which would allow Slade Mink to score, making it a 14-8 game. Alex Marquand would get the scoring started with his double to center field that would score Kaleb Podger to make it 15-8. Later in the eighth, Jhamante Woods would hit a 2-run home run to straight away center field to  make it 17-8. The Knights would put up a fight in the bottom of the ninth when they would score three runs to make it 17-11, but that wasn't enough and the Skyhawks would take Game 1 of the three game series.

Offensive Leaders

Jhamante Woods – 3 for 4; HR, 2B, 4 RBI, 3R

Alex Marquand – 2 for 3; HR, 2B, 3RBI

Slade Mink -2 for 4; 2B, RBI, 3R

Zeb Baird – 2 for 5; 2B, 2RBI, R

On the Mound

Game 2 (Sunday, March 26) – 2-0 WIN (11 innings)

If you like pitching matchups and defense, Game 2 was the game for you. After starter Cameron Seiwert would get in a jam in the fourth inning after inducing a groundout and getting a strikeout, Seiwert would walk the bases loaded. The Skyhawks would go to the bullpen for Clayton Smith, who would come in and get a huge strikeout. Smith would allow one hit in the fifth inning. The Skyhawks would go back to the bullpen for the bottom of the sixth when they would call on Daniel Crabtree. Crabtree would go six innings of one hit baseball to get a Game 2 win for the Skyhawks. In the top of the eleventh, Sam Baker would get a lead off walk to start the offense for the Skyhawks. Jackson Bush would capitalize on the Sam Baker walk by hitting an opposite field home run to take the 2-0 lead on the road. Crabtree would head back out to the mound for the bottom of the eleventh and would face four Knights batters allowing no runs to close out his six innings of work. The Skyhawks would take Game 2, 2-0 and the series win. They would go for the series sweep in Game 3.

Offensive Leader

Jackson Bush – 2 for 4; 2-run go ahead HR, 2RBI, R, BB

On the Mound

Game 3 (March 26, 2023) – 10-1 WIN

After being held to only three hits in Game 2, the Skyhawks offense got their bats out in the late afternoon by combing for sixteen hits and ten runs on the way to the 10-1 victory. Slade Mink would start the scoring when he would sacrifice fly to right field, scoring Jackson Bush to make it 1-0. Jhamante Woods would hit a solo home run in the top of the third to make it 2-0. Later in the third, Jaysen Dower would double to left field to score Zeb Baird to make it 3-0. Alex Marquand would single to right field in the fourth to score Jackson Bush to make it 4-0. The Knights would get their only run of the game on a home run in the bottom of the fourth to make it 4-1. The top of the fifth would see Noah Watkins single to center field to score Woods to make it 5-1. Two batters later in the fifth, Jackson Bush would single to left field to score Baird and Watkins to make it 7-1. In the seventh inning, Slade Mink would get an RBI single that would score Jackson Bush to make it 8-1. Zeb Baird would come to the bat next, single to center field that would score Brett Campbell and Slade Mink to make it 10-1. The starting pitcher for the Skyhawks, Cole Brown would how an absolute dominate performance going a complete game (9 innings), allowing one run over six hits, walking only one and striking out twelve batters to get the Game 3 win. The combination of dominate pitching and offensive explosion were the keys to the 10-1 Game 3 victory and series sweep of Kentucky Christian University.

Offensive Leaders

Jhamante Woods – 2 for 3; HR, RBI, 2BB, 2R

Jackson Bush – 2 for 4; 2RBI, 3R, 2BB, 2B

Slade Mink – 2 for 4; 2RBI, R, 2B, 2RBI

On the Mound

Next Game

The baseball team will play a midweek doubleheader at home on Tuesday against Mobile with the first pitch scheduled for 2:00 P.M.