TOWSON, Md. – The William and Mary baseball team fell at Towson, 13-8, in its series finale on Sunday afternoon at Schuerholz Park. In a back-and-fourth affair where runs were abundant, W&M seized momentum with four runs in the sixth, which was followed by a run in the seventh as the Towson lead was cut to 10-8. However, the Tigers responded by scoring the final three runs en route to the win. The setback drops W&M to 21-12 overall and 6-3 in Colonial Athletic Association play, while Towson improves to 15-16 with win and 7-5 in CAA action.
At the plate, senior center fielder Ryan Brown went 3-for-5 with three RBIs and a run scored. The Fredericksburg, Va., native connected on his first career home run, which was a three-run shot, propelling the Tribe to a four-run sixth. Junior left fielder Willie Shaw tallied two RBIs on one hit, while sophomore first baseman Michael Katz finished the afternoon with two hits, an RBI and a run scored. Freshman left fielder Jonathan Sarty accounted for a hit, an RBI and a run scored, while senior shortstop Ryan Williams connected on a team-high three hits.
Sophomore LHP Jason Inghram (4-3) took the setback after allowing six earned runs in 4.2 innings of work. The Chesapeake, Va., native finished the contest with six strikeouts and just one walk. Senior LHP Matt Wainman worked 1.2 innings of scoreless relief as he allowed just one hit, while posting two strikeouts.
As it had done the previous day, W&M started strong as it posted a two-spot in the opening inning of play. The Tigers retired the first two batters of the contest as Lindemuth's two-out walk got the momentum churning. Katz and freshman designated hitter Charley Gould proceeded to load the bases following a walk and an infield single to the TU pitcher. On a 3-2 offering from Towson starter Brandon Gonnella, Shaw ripped a single into left center field, which pushed across Lindemuth and Katz as W&M took a 2-0 lead.
Towson got on the board with a run in the bottom half. With two outs, senior Andrew Parker drove in senior Zach Fisher from third base on a sacrifice fly out to left center field.
In the top of the fourth, the Tribe extended its advantage by a run after Sarty's one-out single to right center field plated Williams from second base as the W&M margin reached 3-1. The one-out RBI was Sarty's 18th hit and eighth run driven in on the season, while the run scored was Williams' 19th on the year.
The Tigers responded with three unearned runs in the bottom half as it took a 4-3 lead. All of the Towson runs culminated on two outs as sophomore Brendan Butler's two-out RBI single to left center field initiated the scoring.
In the bottom of the fifth, Towson plated six runs as it opened a 10-3 advantage. The inning was highlighted by sophomore Peter Bowels' three-run home run over the left field wall.
The Green and Gold got itself back in the mix after scoring four runs in the top of the sixth. With one swing of the bat, Brown drove in three runs with a towering home run over the left field fence, which plated freshman catcher Ryan Hissey and Sarty. W&M's fourth run of the inning was made possible when Lindemuth reached base on a throwing error by the TU shortstop. Katz followed and plated the Burke, Va., native with a slicing double off the right center field wall.
W&M continued to chip away at the Tiger lead as it plated a run in the top of the seventh. Hissey's one-out double to right center field positioned the Tribe to strike. The West Chester, Pa., native scored W&M's eighth run of the day from second base following a throwing error on the first baseman in an attempt to throw out Williams at first.
With the sense that momentum changed hands in favor of the Green and Gold, Towson answered with three runs in the bottom half as it extended the advantage to the prevailing score of 13-8.
The Tribe returns to action when it travels to VMI on Tuesday, April 9. The first pitch from Gray-Minor Stadium in Lexington, Va., is scheduled for 6 p.m. and fans can follow the action online at TribeAthletics.com with live stats.
