TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Rose-Hulman split their double header series against the Manchester Spartans. The Fightin' Engineers recorded their first shutout of the season in a 4-0 win, before Manchester took game two by a score of 8-5.
Game One
The Spartans were able to load the bases at the top of the third. With two outs,
Liam Richardson closed out the inning by striking out the batter who went down swinging, to close out the inning. Richardson would later find himself in the exact same situation at the top of the fifth, where he would once again strike out the batter with the bases loaded to keep the game tied at zero.
The Fightin' Engineers would put two runners on due to errors at the bottom of the fifth. With two outs,
Connor O'Connell drew a walk to load the bases. In the following at bat,
Jackson Harms smacked a grand slam high over the left field wall to give Rose-Hulman a 4-0 lead. Harms now leads Rose-Hulman with three home runs, and he has recorded two grand slams over the course of his career.
Mason Rasmussen added a stand up double on a line drive to right center field, but the Spartans were able to force a fly out to close out the inning. With two outs and a runner on second in the top of the sixth,
TJ Pipkins made a diving snag in right field, keeping Manchester off the board.
Jackson Summers would add a stand up double of his own off the right field wall in the sixth, before the Spartans forced a fly out to conclude the inning.
Tyler Orr forced three straight groundouts in the top of the seventh, and he added a strikeout in the eighth inning. Orr would then force a line out in the top of the ninth, before striking out back-to-back batters to secure the 4-0 shutout victory.
On the mound,
Liam Richardson picked up the win, where he struck out three batters, while allowing just three hits in 5.2 innings.
Tyler Orr recorded the save as he pitched the final 3.1 innings of the game, where he struck out three batters and did not give up a hit or walk.
Game Two
Camden Judson would get off to a hot start in game two for the Fightin' Engineers, as he closed out the first inning with back-to-back strikeouts. M. Rasmussen and
Issei Takahashi each hit singles on hard ground balls in the bottom of the second. With two outs,
Noah Rasmussen hit a single to right field, where his brother M. Rasmussen scored the opening run of the game.
The Spartans opened the third inning with a single to shortstop, and they would later add a single down the middle which tied the game. With runners on second and third later in the inning, Casey Kelley hit an RBI single to right field, before a sacrifice fly out from Alex Westfield extended their lead to 3-1.
Rose-Hulman made another stand out defensive play in the top of the fourth, as O'Connell snagged a high line drive for the first out. The Fightin' Engineers put two runners on in the bottom of the inning, with Pipkins and M. Rasmussen recording singles. With two outs, Pipkins was able to score on a fielding error as RHIT reduced the deficit to 3-2.
Michael Hines reached first on a fielder's choice in the fifth inning, and he advanced to third on O'Connell line drive single to right field. Harms would bring him home on a sacrifice fly to deep right field, where Hines' run tied the game at three.
Westfield continued to have a good showing for the Spartans, as he led off the fifth with a double through the left side. He would score the go-ahead run following a throwing error, and the Spartans made it a 5-3 game on a sacrifice bunt two batters later. They concluded the inning with a 6-3 lead on an RBI single to center field.
M. Rasmussen would be walked on a full count in the next half inning, and he would later advance to third. He scored Rose-Hulman's fourth run of the game as
Sam Erickson hit an RBI sacrifice fly to center field.
Jack Reeves would force three quick outs in the top of the seventh inning, which included a strikeout looking on a full count.
The Spartans opened the eighth with a single to center field, and they would later score their seventh run on an RBI single down the middle. With a runner on third, Joel Kennedy hit an RBI single to left field, stretching the team's lead to 8-4.
Following a pair of walks, Erickson loaded the bases on a successful bunt in the bottom of the eighth inning. The Spartans would force consecutive outs at home, but Erickson would score to cut the lead to 8-5 heading into the ninth. Pipkins recorded a single to center field in the bottom of the ninth, but Manchester was able to close out the game with a pair of outs to take game two by a score of 8-5.
The Fightin' Engineers will continue their homestand against DePauw on Wednesday, April 1 at 6 PM.
