ELON, N.C. – The William & Mary baseball team fell to Elon, 8-3, in its last game of 2018 on Saturday evening. The Phoenix (35-21, 16-8) pulled away from the Tribe (15-39, 3-21) with four unanswered runs down the stretch.
Both teams scored a pair runs over the first two innings for a 2-all tie to start the game. The Tribe answered first in the opening frame behind a two-out spark. Senior
Ryan Hall singled up the middle and junior
Hunter Smith doubled down the right line, before junior
Colin Lipke roped a two-RBI double down the right line.
The Phoenix created the deadlock on an RBI grounder in the bottom of the first and a led off homer in the second. Elon went on to claim a 4-2 advantage in the fourth inning. The Phoenix juiced the bases and pushed across a run behind a sac fly and another via wild pitch.
W&M trimmed the deficit to 4-3 in the top of the fifth. Sophomore
Brandon Raquet led off the frame with a walk, before Hall belted a one-out double to left center. On the next at bat, Smith platted Raquet courtesy of a sac fly to right field.
However, the Phoenix gained significant separation in the final frames. In the seventh inning, Joe Satterfield hit a two-run homer to right field for Elon. The Phoenix then used three hits, including a double and triple, for another two-run frame and the 8-3 final.
Tribe Standouts
Eight of W&M's starters notched at least one hit. Smith led the way with a 2-for-3 effort, adding a double and RBI. Hall also collected two hits, including a double. Lipke contributed the third double to drive in two runs. Raquet reached safely three times on a base hit and two walks.
Inside the Numbers
- Both teams platted a pair of two-out runs.
- The Phoenix batted .333 (11-for-33), while the Tribe hit .294 (10-for-34).
- The Green and Gold hit .438 (7-for-16) with two outs.
- The W&M pitching staff allowed five extra base hits and Elon conceded three.
- Ryan Conroy (4-3) earned the win as he went five innings with three strikeouts, six hits and three runs.
- Sophomore
Chris Farrell (2-5) allowed four runs on five hits over three innings to take the loss.
- Robbie Welhaf earned his sixth save of the season after hurling two shutout innings of relief.
Notes
Fletcher ended his W&M career with his 105
th appearance, which ranks third in the CAA record books…Hall leaped to third in Tribe history in career doubles (57)…Hall also finishes out his Tribe campaign with 239 career hits…Smith posted his 16
th multi-hit game of the season, while Hall earned his 15
th …Lipke caps 2018 with six multi-RBI games.
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