TERRE HAUTE, Ind. -- Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology opened the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference baseball schedule with a 9-6 and 7-3 sweep over Manchester University on Saturday at Art Nehf Field.
In the opener, Rose-Hulman scored one run in the seventh and three in the eighth to turn a 5-4 lead into a 9-6 victory. Luke Buehler improved to 4-0 on the season with six strikeouts in five innings of work. Brian Pershing picked up the final four outs for his second save.
Offensively, Zach Witonsky led the Rose-Hulman offense with a pinch-hit three-run home run in the eighth inning.
Other key offensive contributors included David Burnside with two doubles and three runs scsored; Logan Cody with two singles, two runs and one RBI; Ryan Stachowski with a single, double and one RBI; and Conner Helbling with two singles and two RBIs. Davis Robeson and Conner Shipley each added a single and one run scored to the offensive performance.
The second game started as a pitching duel and ended with a Rose-Hulman victory. Clayton Mayfield shutout Manchester for the first six innings, before the Spartans took a 2-1 lead in the seventh. Rose-Hulman answered with six runs in the seventh inning to secure the victory.
Mayfield allowed just five hits with eight strikeouts in his strong seven-inning performance. Adam Taylor picked up the final three outs to cap off the win.
The Rose-Hulman offense recorded 11 hits in the victory. Sean Casey snapped a scoreless tie in the fifth inning with a home run, and Cody had three hits with a double. Pershing had a single and two RBIs, while Luke Kluemper and Ryan Stachowski added a hit, run and RBI each.
Rose-Hulman improved to 12-6 on the season and 2-0 in HCAC play, while Manchester dropped to 7-16 and 2-2 in league play. The Fightin' Engineers return to action with a non-conference doubleheader on Sunday at Wabash.
