BOX SCORE
PHOTOS
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. - Junior Andrew Stull pitched a complete-game shutout as the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology baseball team opened Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC) play with a 4-0 victory over Defiance on Friday, March 20.
The Fightin' Engineers opened the scoring in the bottom of the third when junior Patrick Klima tripled to right field and scored a single from fellow junior Caleb Kissel. Rose-Hulman tacked on another run in the fourth when junior Kody Alayon singled to right field scoring junior Josh Koutnik.
After scoring two more runs in the fifth, Stull surrendered three consecutive hits in the sixth. With the bases loaded, Defiance's Ryan Kohlhofer hit a line drive to Alayon who stepped on second and threw over to first to record the rare triple play.
The Yellow Jackets (5-4) put two more runners on in the seventh, but Stull forced a 4-6-3 double play to get out of the inning unscathed. Stull allowed just one base runner in the final two innings and picked up his second victory of the season striking out seven in nine innings of work.
Kissell and sophomore Zach Trusk each finished 2-4 on the day with one RBI. Trusk also proved his worth behind the plate, throwing out two Defiance runners attempting to steal second base. Six other Engineers tallied a single hit.
Rose-Hulman stands at 6-5 on the season and 1-0 in conference play. The Engineers return to the diamond tomorrow (Saturday) for a doubleheader against Defiance. First pitch is scheduled for noon.
