CHAMBERSBURG, Pa. – The Cairn University baseball team split their Colonial States Athletic Conference (CSAC) doubleheader against Wilson College in Chambersburg on Sunday afternoon, claiming game one by a score of 12-6 in extra innings before falling in walk-off fashion, 12-11 in the nightcap.
In game one, Cairn (5-11, 1-2 CSAC) and Wilson (12-5, 2-1 CSAC) engaged in a pitcher's duel early on, as senior
Sam Spadea (Yardley, PA / Pennsbury) allowed just one run through five innings of play, and both teams were deadlocked at one a-piece. Wilson delivered what looked to be the decisive blow in the bottom of the sixth inning, via a three-run home run to take a 4-1 lead. In the top of the seventh, sophomore
Tyler Warr (Langhorne, PA / Neshaminy) cut the deficit to two (4-2) with an RBI-double down the line, before classmate
Tyler Harris (Oxford, PA / Oxford) stepped to the plate in a pinch-hitting situation with two outs and the bases loaded, with the Highlanders down to their final out. Harris then connected on a two-out, pinch-hit, grand slam to give Cairn a 6-4 lead heading into the bottom half of the seventh.
Wilson responded accordingly, sending a game-tying, two-run homer over the fence in left field to send the game to extras. After neither team broke through in the eighth, Cairn put a stamp on the contest in the top of the ninth, plating six runs, highlighted by a bases-clearing double by senior
Joe Greenwood (Wall, NJ / Calvary Academy), before setting down the Phoenix in the bottom half to seal the victory.
Senior
Tyler Fox (Boyertown, PA / West-Mont Christian Academy) led the offensive effort with a pair of his, while Harris' grand slam accounted for a team-high four RBIs. Spadea got the start on the bump, earning a no-decision after going six strong, scattering seven hits, six runs (five earned) and striking out three. Freshman
Nick Benson (Philadelphia, PA / Father Judge) got the win in relief, hurling 2.1 scoreless innings of one-hit ball and striking out three, while sophomore
Brett Bottinger (Plymouth Meeting, PA / Chestnut Hill College) faced one batter, enforcing a game-ending double play to seal the win.
In game two, Wilson took advantage of some sloppy Cairn defense in the second inning, scoring eight runs off of four Highlanders miscues to lead 8-1 after two. The Highlanders exploded in the top of the third, plating 10 runs in the inning. The Cairn rally was started by a two-run homer by Spadea, and capped off by a bases-clearing triple by Warr. Unfortunately, the Highlander bats quieted from there, as Cairn did not record another hit for the remainder of the contest. Cairn led 11-8 entering the bottom of the seventh inning, before Wilson rallied to score four runs and win the contest in walk-off fashion.
Warr and Spadea led the Highlander bats in game two with a pair of hits a-pop. Spadea added four RBIs, and tallied his 100
th career collegiate hit in the first inning, while Warr totaled three RBIs on his bases-clearing triple. Sophomore
Dylan Jackson (Levittown, PA / Chestnut Hill College) earned a no-decision on the mound after hurling six innings, and giving up just one earned run.
The Highlanders will be back on the field on Tuesday, March 28 when they return home to take on non-conference adversary Neumann University for a single, nine-inning game inside the Stillman Complex at 3 p.m.
