WILMINGTON, N.C. - The William and Mary baseball team fell at UNCW, 7-2, in a Colonial Athletic Association series opener on Thursday night at Brooks Field. The contest was tied at 1-1 after two innings of play, but the Seahawks plated the five unanswered runs over the course of the middle innings en route to the win. The setback drops W&M to 31-18 overall and 14-8 in league action, while UNCW improves to 35-15 on the year and 16-5 in CAA play.
Junior second baseman Ryan Lindemuth led the offensive attack with a 3-for-3 effort, which included two RBIs and a run scored. The Burke, Va., native connected on his second home run of the season in the top half of the second inning. Junior third baseman Willie Shaw finished the evening with two hits and a run scored, while senior center fielder Ryan Brown and freshman catch Ryan Hissey each finished the contest with a hit.
On the mound, senior RHP John Farrell (9-2) took the setback after allowing five earned runs in 4.1 innings of work. Sophomore J.T. Castner was solid in 3.2 innings of relief action, as he didn't allow a run while scattering just three hits.
After UNCW plated a run in the opening frame, W&M responded in the top half of the second as Lindemuth's towering solo shot over the left field wall tied the contest at 1-1.
The Seahawks took control of the contest after plating six runs over the course of the third, fourth and fifth innings. UNCW owned a three-run advantage, 4-1, as play entered the bottom of the fifth. The Seahawks went on to plate three runs in the bottom half, two on singles and one on a fielder's choice, as it extended its margin to 7-1 after five innings of action.
W&M cut the deficit to 7-2 after scoring a run in the top half of the sixth. With one out, Shaw got things started with a single to right field and later advanced to second on a wild pitch. Lindemuth plated the Yorba Linda, Calif., native with a two-out single into left field. That's as close as W&M got to threatening the Seahawk lead as the run batted in was Lindemuth's 27th of the season, while the run scored was Shaw's 26th.
The series continues tomorrow at Brooks Field with the first pitch scheduled for 6 p.m. Fans can follow the action online at TribeAthletics.com with live stats.
