WILLIAMSBURG, Va. - The
William and Mary baseball team defeated Richmond, 17-4, Tuesday night at
Plumeri Park. After scoring 11 runs in
the first two innings, and behind freshman first baseman Michael Katz's two
home runs, the Tribe cruised to its second victory over the Spiders this year. The win improves W&M to 23-13 overall,
while Richmond drops to 16-14 on the year.
Katz went 3-for-4 with seven RBIs, while connecting on his
seventh and eighth home runs of the year to lead the Tribe bats. Freshman designated hitter Josh Smith was
2-for-4 with three RBIs and a run scored.
Junior center fielder Ryan Brown finished the contest scoring four runs
on a 3-for-5 effort. Sophomore third
baseman Ryan Lindemuth capped off a steller night going 2-for-4 with three runs
scored. Junior second baseman Kevin Nutter tallied two hits, while senior right fielder Stephen Arcure was 1-for-3
with four runs scored. Rounding out the
W&M effort was senior left fielder Tadd Bower and senior catcher Sean Aiken, who notched two RBIs each.
On the mound, senior LHP Cole Shain (4-2) earned his fourth
win of the season. In his 5.0 innings of
work, the Ashburn, Va., native surrendered only one earned run on just two
hits. Freshmen LHP Jason Inghram worked
two scoreless innings of relief, while classmate J.T. Castner worked an inning,
allowing two earned runs. Sophomore RHP
Matt Houston worked the ninth and allowed no runs on two hits. Richmond's sophomore RHP Andrew Brockett
(0-5) took the loss.
W&M got off to a quick start as it plated six runs in
the opening frame. Nutter put the Green
and Gold ahead, 1-0, after advancing home on a Brockett wild pitch. After Brown and Arcure reached base with a
single and a walk, Katz plated the pair with a home run to right center field. Aiken put the College ahead, 6-0, after his
single to center field plated Bower and Lindemuth.
The Green and Gold extended its lead to 11-0 after plating
five runs in the bottom half of the second.
Smith highlighted the five run frame after his double down the left
field line pushed across Arcure and Lindemuth.
In the bottom of the third, the College plated three runs as
it pushed the margin to 14-0. Bower's
sacrifice fly to center field scored Brown for the frame's first run. Arcure's run made the score 13-0, and the
inning's third run culminated on a Smith double down the left field line which
plated Lindemuth.
Richmond got on the board with a run in the top half of the
fourth. Senior designated hitter Chris
Cowell drove in junior third baseman Adam McConnell with a sacrifice fly to
left field.
The College countered with three runs in the bottom
half. Brown led off the frame with a
double to right field and later advanced to third after Arcure reached first on
an error. With two outs and runners on
first and third, Katz belted the first pitch thrown to him by Richmond's
freshman RHP James Lively over the right field wall.
In the top of the eighth, the Spiders pushed across a trio
runs. Having already scored two runs,
senior center fielder Robby Massar drove in junior pinch hitter Ryan Mallory
with a single to center field.
The College will begin a seven-game road stint this weekend
as it treks to Georgia State for a three-game conference series with the
Panthers. Friday's first pitch from
Atlanta, Ga., is scheduled for 6 p.m.
Fans can follow the action online at TribeAthletics.com with live audio
and stats.
