Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 Game 1
Aleq McMullin received the start on the mound for the Panthers in the first game. McMullin did a brilliant job, and pitched to weak contact most of the game. It was perhaps the best outing the Panthers have had all season, as McMullin dealt a complete game, one-hit, shutout. Jake Miller, the leadoff hitter for the Red Devils, recorded his teams' only base hit in the game, which came in the top of the third inning, on an 0-2 fastball that McMullin needed to be elevated a little bit higher in the zone. This was the only mistake McMullin made all night, as he did an outstanding job. He threw seven innings, did not surrender any runs, allowed just one hit and two walks, and struck out eight batters!
Offensively, the Panthers came out and put up five runs in the bottom half of the first inning. After
Connor Coyne reached on an error, he proceeded to steal second base and then advanced to third base on
Parker Davidson's line drive single to right center.
Hunter Mehring followed with a bases clearing triple in the right center gap.
Zach Grennie then delivered a towering homerun to left center, increasing the Panthers lead to 4-0. This two-run blast moved Grennie into second in the SLIAC in homeruns, one behind Trevor Montgomery of Greenville, who has hit 10 so far. Grennie has hit more homers than any other freshman in the league, though.
Aleq McMullin reached base on a hit-by-pitch.
Bryce Murray then laid down a SAC bunt, which advanced McMullin to second base.
Jake Kearney continued the inning with an RBI line drive single to center.
Jeff Ross singled, before the Red Devils finally recorded the final two outs.
The Panthers tacked on three more runs in the second innings, but then were held in check until the sixth inning, when they scored one more run.
Hunter Mehring,
Zach Grennie, and
Aleq McMullin, all had multi-hit games. Mehring smacked a triple and a double. McMullin had a double and a single, and Grennie went a perfect 3-3 with a homer, double, and a single, and four runs driven in. The Panthers played great baseball in game one, and walked away with a 9-0 victory.
Game 2
Game two was a different story, as the Panthers came out flat, and it was the Red Devils who scored first. Unlike the first game tonight, the Panthers were unable to produce any runs until the final inning. However, they hit the ball hard in the game, and had five or six fly outs to the warning track.
Sawyer Grow received the start on the hill, and pitched well. However, the Red Devils scored four runs in the top half of the fourth, which was all they needed. Grow went seven innings, allowed seven hits and five earned runs, and walked three, while striking out eight.
Offensively,
Jake Kearney led the way, as he was the only Panther to record two hits in the game.
Hunter Mehring collected a double, and David Giorlando came through with an RBI single to right field in his final at-bat in the ninth inning. Over the course of both games tonight,
Hunter Mehring improved his batting average to .336 (.379 in SLIAC play) and his OBP to .463 (.476 in conference), both of which are team-highs thus far.
The Panthers are scheduled to play their final two games of the 2016 season this Saturday at home versus the MacMurray Highlanders, at 5:00 and 7:00 p.m. Thank you all for your continued support, and congratulations again to our senior,
David McClelland!
