COLLEGEVILLE, Pa. – Junior outfielder
Peter Balos recorded his first career four-hit game leading the Ursinus College baseball team to an 8-5 victory over Gwynedd Mercy University on Tuesday afternoon.
Balos fell a triple short of the cycle but finished 4-of-5 from the plate including a season-high four RBIs, while senior
Will Kelley added two base hits and two runs scored. Junior
Andrew Richter collected three RBIs during the contest with first-year
Barritt Ross finishing 1-for-4 with a run scored.
On the mound, Ross and junior
Mike Scheller combined for eight shutout innings before the Griffins added five runs in the bottom of the ninth inning. Senior righty
Ian Conroy closed the out the ninth by retiring each of the three batters he faced to give Ursinus the 8-5 victory. Ross tallied his first career victory behind three shutout innings allowing just one hit, while Scheller pitched four scoreless innings until the ninth frame.
Each pitching staff kept the opposing offenses off balance through the opening frame, but the Griffins put two runners on base in the bottom of the second inning with just one out. After a walk, a single, and a fielder's choice, Ross recorded a strikeout to strand both runners on base to keep the score tied at 0-0.
Ursinus broke through in the top of the third inning scoring four runs off three hits and one defensive error to jump out to a 4-0 lead. Sophomore
George Nestor led off the frame with a walk before being advanced into scoring position on a groundout from classmate
Kyle Rosenfeld. After a groundout, Kelly recorded the first RBI with an infield single to give Ursinus a 1-0 advantage. With two outs, Kelly swiped second base, before a walk from junior
Jakob Cantor, and a double by junior
Andrew Richter extended the Bears lead to three. Balos followed up by jumping on an 0-2 pitch and launching double into the left centerfield gap to stretch the Bears lead to 4-0.
Each team was held off the scoreboard until the Bears added four insurance runs in the top of the ninth inning to stretch their lead to 8-0. Ross led off the frame with a single into left field before advancing to third on a Kelley single into center. After a Griffins defensive error, Ross came across the plate on a sacrifice fly from Richter to give Ursinus a 5-0 advantage. With two runners on and just one out, Balos jumped on a 2-1 fastball and lifted his first homerun of the season over the left field fence to give Ursinus an 8-0 lead.
The Griffins answered with five runs in their last chance at the plate, but the lead proved to be too large as Ursinus earned an 8-5 victory. Conroy came into the contest with the bases loaded and was able to escape the jam with a strikeout and two flyouts to give the Bears their third victory in their last four contests.
The Bears return to action on Saturday by hosting Gettysburg College for a Centennial Conference doubleheader starting at noon.
