BLUEFIELD, W.Va. – The Frostburg State Baseball team finished their weekend undefeated, rounding out their time with Bluefield State with wins of 8-4 and 11-1 on Sunday.
Senior Mikey Guy recorded the first hit of the day in game one, roping a double to center, but was left on base in the start of inning. Senior Jacob McDonald threw to start for Frostburg, as Bluefield recorded two hits and a run to jump ahead 1-0 after the first. The Bobcats saw a 1-2-3 outing from the plate in their offensive half of the second, as McDonald ended the inning by picking off the runner at first, sending the game into the third.
Sophomore Jackson Schalick and redshirt freshman CJ Carmichael knotted back-to-back singles in the team's next at-bats, but FSU wasn't able to get anything going, leaving both on base. McDonald saw an easy bottom of the third, giving up one hit and stranding the runner on base. Senior Doyle McNew reached base to start the fourth, drawing a walk, being brought home on a two-run bomb to left from sophomore Ryan Bouma to put Frostburg in front 2-1.
Redshirt junior Ben Wieman saw a hit in the fourth, as McDonald picked up three straight outs, after giving up a leadoff double in the bottom half of the inning. Frostburg saw a slow fifth inning from the plate, as junior Joe Pippin took the bump to kick off the bottom of the inning. Bluefield made quick work, scoring a run on a sacrifice fly to tie things up at two, as redshirt senior Nate Vermillion finished out the fifth, as the Big Blue stood in front 4-2 after five.
Graduate Randy Steen began the sixth reaching on an infield single, with McNew sending Steen to second after being hit by a pitch. Redshirt sophomore Tiernan Daly came in to pinch run for McNew, with Daly and Steen both stealing a base. Wieman then put the ball in play, reaching on an error, as Steen was able to cross home plate. Junior Jake Holler gave FSU the lead off a single to center field, advancing to second on another Bluefield error, as Daly and Wieman all came around to score for a 5-4 Bobcat advantage. Junior Kody Abrisz then knotted a double to right, as Schalick then put the ball in play, setting up Haller to come home for a 6-4 game heading into the bottom of the sixth.
Redshirt senior Nate Vermillion came in to pitch in the sixth, giving up a double but securing two strikeouts to leave the runner stranded. Frostburg added two more runs to their total in their last at-bats of game one, with Steen reaching first on a bunt single and moving to second as sophomore Logan Helser drew a walk. Wieman walked to load the bases, with Steen and Helser running home after a single to the outfield from sophomore Brian Scott to advance the game to 8-4. Vermillion trotted out to the mound to end the seventh, pitching a 1-2-3 inning to seal the 8-4 victory for FSU in game one.
Both teams saw a minimum number of batters in their first plate appearance of game two, with senior Patrick Bauer throwing game two from the bump, racking up a duo of strikeouts in his first time out. McNew secured the first hit of the game in the top half of the second, as Wieman doubled to left to score McNew for an early 1-0 Frostburg lead. Senior Cy Probst then made his way to the plate, also raking a double to left, scoring Wieman and picking up his first RBI of the day. Freshman Manny Hall kept the momentum going for the Bobcats, sending a triple to the outfield, helping FSU finish on top 3-0 heading into the bottom of the second.
Once again Bauer saw a strong inning, giving up one hit and seeing two strikeouts in his next two appearances. McNew, continuing his energy on the day, expanded Frostburg's advantage to 4-0 after a homer over the right field fence. The Big Blue rallied for two hits to begin their at-bats of the fourth, getting one run back off a wild pitch. Bauer again fanned two batters in the inning, as the score read 4-1 heading into the fifth.
Hall and Schalick led off the fifth with a pair of singles, both going around to score on an RBI single from Guy for a 6-1 game. Steen then drew a base after getting hit by a pitch, trotting around the bases on another bomb from Bouma, moving the Bobcats in front 9-1. Bauer continued his success on the mound, picking up two more K's in the inning for a 1-2-3 outing.
Probst started off the sixth with a walk, with sophomore Cole Carter coming in to pinch run. With two outs, Abrisz reached first after a walk as well, putting two on for the Bobcats, with both adding to FSU's total off a two-RBI double from Guy. Senior Cael Huyer took the mound for Frostburg in the bottom half of the inning, seeing three batters for three quick outs. Senior Christian Shertzer got on in the Bobcats' last at-bats, with sophomore Christian Bonilla seeing time from the mound in the bottom of the inning. Bonilla saw four batters for three outs and two strikeouts to finish out the 11-1 victory for Frostburg.
Guy paved the way for Frostburg on offense with three hits, four RBI, and one run. Five Bobcats recorded a pair of hits throughout the day, with Bouma being credited with five RBI and three runs. Vermillion was given the win in game one, his first of the season, striking out four in two innings, while Bauer received the win in game two, also his first of the year, throwing five innings giving up just three hits, one run, one walk, and striking out 10.
With the win, Frostburg improves to 6-2 on the season, while Bluefield State drops to 0-14. The Bobcats next travel to East Stroudsburg on Saturday, March 2 for a doubleheader beginning at 11 AM. For more information and updates, please visit frostburgsports.com.
