The Wayne State University baseball team won both games of a doubleheader against Tiffin University on Saturday, improving their record to 3-0 for the season. The Warriors secured victories with scores of 16-5 and 9-4 at UC Baseball Stadium in Cincinnati. The four-game series between the two teams will conclude on Sunday with a nine-inning game scheduled to begin at 1 p.m.
In the first game, Wayne State scored two runs in the opening inning, followed by ten runs in the third and four more in the fourth. Five players had multiple hits: Owen Tuccinardi collected three hits, Drew Hill also had three, while Nick Sandiha Jr., Bennett Hitzelberger, and Tony Hatzigeorgiou each contributed two hits.
Tuccinardi drove in five runs with a solo home run and an RBI double in the third inning, along with a three-run homer in the fourth. Hill added a two-run home run and a sacrifice fly. Sandiha Jr. recorded a two-run double, while Brayden Crowe hit a two-run double as well.
On the pitching side, Gavin Nash started for Wayne State and allowed five runs (four earned) over three innings. Nick Baker came out of the bullpen to pitch three scoreless innings and earned the win after allowing just one hit and striking out three batters. Coy Plummer closed out the game with a scoreless seventh inning.
In game two, Wayne State took an early lead by scoring one run each in the first and third innings. After Tiffin tied it up in the fourth inning, Alfredo Velazquez hit his first grand slam as a Warrior during a four-run fifth inning for Wayne State.
Gabe Zeldes added his first career home run for Wayne State in the sixth inning. Additional runs came from Velazquez’s RBI single and Landon Ide’s RBI double later in the game.
Keegan Pulford-Thorpe started on the mound for Wayne State, pitching four innings while giving up two earned runs on two hits with five strikeouts to earn his first win of the season. Rocco Cardinale made his return from injury by pitching seven outs in relief; he gave up two earned runs on two hits with three strikeouts before Will DeMasse finished off the final outs of the game.
Wayne State University’s men’s baseball program competes at NCAA Division II level within the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC), according to its official website. The team plays its home games in Detroit, Michigan and is known as “the Warriors,” using “W the Warrior” as its mascot. The program captured its GLIAC Tournament championship title back in 2010 (source).
The Warriors are set to finish their series against Tiffin on Sunday afternoon.
