LEXINGTON, Va. – The Capital University baseball team took the field for the first game of their spring trip on Tuesday, squaring off with the Generals of Washington and Lee. In the end, it was W&L on the winning side of the scoreboard, 14-2.
Capital falls to 2-3 on the new season.
Washington and Lee moves to 6-3.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Comets were threatening early on in the second, with
Ryne McKinney and
EJ Santana hitting safely, and
Hunter Wilson reaching via an error. However, an unlucky lineout to second from
Kielan LaMarr doubled up Wilson at first and ended the inning.
Capital then found themselves in a sticky situation in the bottom of the inning, facing runners on first and third with no men out. Washington and Lee tried to get tricky, sending a runner to second and the other home after the throw but some heads up defense from the Comets cut the runner down at home. Following that, a fly out to right field sent a lone baserunner to third but
Curtis Clark kept the scoreboard clean with a strikeout to finish the frame.
W&L were threatening again in the bottom of the fourth, and a couple of doubles with singles sprinkled in between led to five runs for the Generals. Unfortunately for the Comets, the Generals would extend their lead to seven following a two-run home run prior to the end of the inning, 7-0.
Capital looked to get some runs back in the top of the fifth, quickly loading the bases courtesy of singles by Wilson, LaMarr, and
Reagan Burch.
Grayson Gulley would then walk to bring home Wilson from third for the first run of the afternoon for CU, 7-1.
Washington and Lee added another homerun in the home half of the inning which would be quickly canceled out by a homer by Santana. That blast was Santana's first of the season and the third of his career, bringing the score to 8-2 in favor of the hosts.
W&L would add six runs in the bottom of the sixth to bring their lead to 14-2. The Comets would come and go quietly in the top of the seventh despite stringing together a couple of hits, and the game would come to a close after seven innings, 14-2.
THE NUMBERS
Capital scored two runs off of eight hits with four errors and nine men left on base. Washington and Lee scored 14 runs off of 13 hits with two errors and eight men left on base.
Curtis Clark got the start for the Comets, going 3.0 innings and facing 14 batters with no runs allowed, three strikeouts, and only two hits allowed. The rest of the game was covered by
Gavin Vanhorn,
Aaron Olech,
Ethan Pollack,
Casey Wilkins, and
Kaleb Stafford.
EJ Santana reached base safely in two of his four at-bats, also knocking in a run in the form of a solo home run in the sixth.
Hunter Wilson and
Ryne McKinney also got themselves two hits in the contest, with Wilson scoring the Comets' first run of the game.
Grayson Gulley was the one to knock in Wilson via a walk in the fifth inning.
Kielan LaMarr and
Reagan Burch were responsible for the remaining two hits for Capital.
UP NEXT
The Comets will continue their spring trip tomorrow at Southern Virginia with a doubleheader against the Knights. That set will have 11 a.m./1 p.m. start times in Buena Vista, Virginia with each game being scheduled for seven innings. After that, Capital will take a trip to the nation's capital, visiting Washington D.C. on Thursday, followed by a three-game set against Elmira in Bowie, Maryland on Friday and Saturday.
