The Shepherd University Rams baseball team is looking very strong following this week as they won all four games on their docket, outscoring their opponents by a total of 30–2.
Pitchers Paul Hvozdovic and Ryan Pansch both pitched six innings of shutout baseball in their games against the University of Virginia at Wise Cavaliers. Hvozdovic allowed only two hits in his outing while recording six strikeouts. On the other side of the double header, Pansch looked equally as sharp. He gave up five hits and struck out nine Cavaliers. Sam Crater recorded his first save of the year in that game.
Jacob Carney came up huge for the Rams in the first game of the double header. The Rams led one to nothing going into the sixth inning. Designated hitter Ryan Messina, first baseman Austin Guy and right fielder Matt Wilson were able to get on base before Carney stepped into the batter’s box. The second baseman smacked a bases clearing double into left field, giving the rams a four to nothing lead. They would add on three more runs in the seventh inning to win by a final of seven to zero.
On the flip side, the Rams won a one to zero game. The lone run came in the third inning when left fielder Kyle Porter scored on a wild pitch allowed by Cavalier pitcher Alex Javins. Porter scored two runs in the two games against the Cavaliers.
Other notable performances from the Rams came from third baseman Bryce Shemer. He recorded three base hits and a run batted in on six at bats in the double header. Senior D2 player of the year hopeful Messina notched two hits on four at bat and wreaked havoc on the base path, recording multiple stolen bases.
The Rams also won a double header against the Virginia State University Trojans. They won the first game by a score 12–1 and looked just as sharp in the nightcap, winning 11–1. No individual statistics about the game were made available, but it is nice to see such an overall dominate performance by the team’s hitting and pitching.
The Rams will look to continue their win streak this upcoming week as they have another doubleheader against the Cavaliers of UVa-Wise. That game will take place Sunday, March 2. The Rams will also travel to the University of Charleston where they will face off against the Golden Eagles on Saturday, March 8.