Box Score
ANNVILLE, Pa. – Led by a
Nate Peiffer grand slam in the second inning, and a complete game effort by junior
Matt Rehrig the Lions (7-16/3-7 Commonwealth) picked-up their second straight conference win in 24 hours as they defeated Lebanon Valley College (9-17/2-8 Commonwealth) by the final score of 8-1 Friday afternoon at McGill Field.
Peiffer's grand-slam capped off a five-run top of the second for the Lions, and was the first grand slam since
Mike Nolan's four-run in the park blast back on April 18, 2009 in the 8-2 win over Messiah College on Kelchner Field.
Rehrig's (2-3) afternoon which consisted of just one run on 10 hits also saw the righty retire three batters, while only walking one other. Friday's outing marked the first complete nine inning game for the Lions bullpen, and was the second complete game of Rehrig's career.
Following the huge five-run second, the Lions defense led by Rehrig would not allow a Lebanon Valley run until the bottom half of the eighth. Colt Zarilla would record the lone Dutchmen run in the form of a solo home run. It was also in the seventh that faced the most batters of any other inning in Friday's contest, with a mere six Dutchmen coming to the plate.
As a team, the Lions compiled 10 hits of their own, and did not give-up an error all afternoon. Peiffer would end his day going 2-for-5 with five RBI and a run scored. Behind him was senior
Shawn Walbert who went 3-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored.
Matt Pannella continued to produce for the Lions going 2-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored as well.
Justin Danser,
Tom Canuso, and
Jojo Fischer each recorded a hit to keep the Lions offense roaring.
For Lebanon Valley, they featured three different pitchers in Friday's contest, but it was Jake Becker who got the loss, his second of the year. Becker went the first five innings allowing six runs on six hits, while also striking out five. Mike Specht pitched 2 2/3 innings of relief, with Peter Moro closing out the game allowing just one hit in 1 1/3 innings of action.
Jacob Rhody, Dustin Deibert, and Derek Brousseau each went 2-for-4, while Zarilla, Aaron Mills, Jordan Witmer, and Jordan Higgins each picked-up a hit in the loss.
Baseball returns to action tomorrow when they host the Dutchmen on Kelchner Field in a conference doubleheader scheduled to begin at noon.
