Louisville, Ky. – The Transylvania baseball team notched 23 hits on the day but ended up losing a pair of games in a doubleheader against the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology Fightin' Engineers at Jim Patterson Stadium in Louisville.
In game one the Fightin' Engineers got off to a hot start with five runs in the first three innings. All the while, the Pioneers were held out of the hit column as they tried to get going on the day. Griffin Hall's leadoff single in the bottom of the fourth broke the spell, and in the fifth Austin Taylor smacked a double to score Braden Becker, cutting into the deficit at 5-1.
Ty Conner pitched 6.0 strong innings out of the bullpen and Transy kept Rose-Hulman off the board in the fourth, fifth, and sixth innings. Trent Youngblood connected on a home run that gave the Pioneers life, 5-2 in the bottom of the sixth. However, the Fightin' Engineers responded with a homer of their own to start the seventh, and key insurance runs late. Transylvania refused to go down without a fight, as Calvin Schubert hit a triple and came home on a sacrifice fly in the eighth, but Rose-Hulman took the game by a final score of 10-4.
In game two the Pioneers fell behind after six two out runs came across for the Fightin' Engineers, giving them the early lead in the first inning. Despite no extra base hits, Transy plated four runs in the bottom of the first and second innings, through plate discipline and effective baserunning. In the fourth, Youngblood came through with a bases loaded single, and Schubert came across home on a fielders' choice, as Transy closed the gap making it a 7-6 game.
Unfortunately for the Pioneers, the one run deficit was as close as they would get on the night, as Rose-Hulman put up four in the fifth and sixth innings, to take an 11-6 lead. In the seventh Youngblood hit a sacrifice fly to score Schubert, who himself then drove in Becker in the eighth. Transylvania continued to rack up hits and baserunners late in the contest, but were unable to cash in, as Rose-Hulman won 12-8.
The Pioneers continue their stretch of HCAC play next Saturday with a doubleheader at Manchester University, with a 12 & 3 PM scheduled start.
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