NEW CASTLE, Del. - - The bats came alive this afternoon as the Wilmington University baseball team snapped a three game losing streak and upended nonconference foe Kutztown, 9-7, at Wilson Field on the strength of 12 hits and key runs.
What was missing from yesterday's contest came through Wednesday as Wilmington (13-10 overall) picked up five hits with runners on base and left only eight runners on base through the nine innings.
Kutztown (18-6 overall) tried to respond after falling behind early on multiple occasions, but the Wildcats scored at least one run in three of the five half-innings following a Golden Bear score.
After being named to this week's Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference Weekly Honorable Mention senior Mike Godwin got the starting nod on the mound for the Wildcats, but helped himself out in a big way in the bottom of the first inning.
Getting his first start since the team's trip to Florida because of an injury, BJ Janney led off the first with a single through the right side. Jordan Johnson followed with another single and Joe Harbach walked to load the bases without recording an out. Godwin stepped in and launched a 2-0 inside pitch into the pine trees in left field for the grand slam. It was his first of the year and gave the Wildcats a quick 4-0 lead.
Godwin got the first two outs of the second inning but then left the mound due to an injury, giving way to Ray Gambone. Kutztown put two on the board in the second to cut the lead in half, but Wilmington responded with another rally of its own.
With two outs and the bases empty, Harbach and Godwin reached on a hit by and pitch and a walk, respectively, to start the rally. With runners on second and third, Adam Soley singled into left field and picked up the two RBI's before being thrown out at second on the play.
Kyle Hitchens made it 7-2 with a sacrifice fly in the third, as Jordan Oncay raced home from third after leading off the inning with a single through the left side.
The game then turned into a home run derby, as Kutztown added single runs in the fourth, fifth and sixth innings to close the gap. Brandon Stoudt led off the fifth with his first home run of the season with a shot to right for the Bears before Corey Buletza hit a two-out, bases empty jack to dead center field for Kutztown's fifth run of the game.
Oncay wanted to get in on the act as well, as he retaliated with a lead-off solo jack of his own in the bottom of the fifth, and the game went into the final three innings with Wilmington on top 8-5.
The Golden Bears made it a one-run game in the top of the eight, as they scored two unearned runs off reliever Nick Marics. Kutztown loaded the bases without recording an out, as the Bear reached on an error, a double and a walk. But Marics induced a ground ball double play hit to the Jonathan Rodriguez at short for the first two outs of the inning. The third out was hard to come by, however, as Stoudt smacked a double to right center to cut the Wildcat lead to 8-7. But with runners on first and second, Marics was able to get Sean McCormick to fly out to keep the lead.
Needing an insurance run, Janney led off the bottom of the eighth with another single and moved up to second on a sacrifice bunt by Johnson. On the first pitch Harbach saw, he pulled a single into right field, scoring Janney from second without a throw.
Oncay came on to pitch the top of the ninth and hasn't given up a single run since his final outing in the CACC Tournament during the 2010 season. He picked up two quick outs on a strikeout and a ground out, but walked Brett Hauck to bring the tying run to the plate. Kutztown's three-hole hitter waved at a pitch out of the zone on a 1-2 count, ending the game as Oncay picked up save number six on the season.
Frank Samluk earned his first win of the year, pitching two innings in relief and throwing through the fourth inning to pick up the win. He struck out two batters in two innings, allowing two runs on three hits.
Janney, Johnson, Godwin, Soley and Oncay collected two hits apiece on the afternoon, as Godwin led with four RBI's on one swing of the bat. Harbach and catcher Matt Lopes picked up the other two hits for the Wildcats.
Wilmington returns to CACC action this weekend, as the Wildcats will head to Felician College on Saturday for a doubleheader. The Wildcats are currently 3-4 in the conference while Felician stands at 4-2. The first pitch of game one is scheduled for 2 p.m.
