AUBURNDALE, Fla. – The Washington & Jefferson baseball team scored two runs in the bottom of the ninth inning, but needed three as Wisconsin-Stevens Point emerged victorious, 5-4, on Friday, March 24, in the final game of the 2017 RussMatt Spring Invitational.
 
The Presidents finished their trip to Florida with a 3-3 record, putting their overall record at 7-3 while today's win moves the Pointers to 5-7 overall.
 
Trailing by the score of 5-2 entering the bottom of the ninth inning, Nick Gatins (North Royalton, Ohio/North Royalton) led off the inning with a single to center. Two batters later, Kevin Begley (Allison Park, Pa./Deer Lakes) drew a pinch-hit walk to knock the Pointers' pitcher out of the game. After Luke Zahren (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Allegheny) pinch ran for Begley, Adam LaRue (Imperial, Pa./West Allegheny) blooped a single into center field to load the bases, still with just one out.
 
Derek Helbing (Pataskala, Ohio/Watkins Memorial) then reached on a fielder's choice to shortstop which scored Gatins and then Zahren, thanks to a throwing error by the shortstop, which rounded out the scoring in the game.
 
The Presidents scored one run in both the second and third innings to get on the board first on Friday. Mark Merlino (Irwin, Pa./Penn-Trafford) lined his second triple in as many games to right-center field and proceeded to score on an RBI groundout to short by Ryan Sciullo (Vandergrift, Pa./Kiski Area). In the third inning, LaRue reached on a one-out single to center and advanced to second on a groundout. Nick Vento (Murrysville, Pa./Franklin Regional) then lined his first of two doubles in the game to right center to score LaRue.
 
The Pointers did their scoring in the sixth and ninth innings, getting three runs on four hits and an error in the sixth before scoring twice in the top of the ninth on three hits.
 
LaRue, Vento and Gatins all finished with two hits in the game as Vento had one RBI and LaRue and Gatins both scored once.
 
Riley Groves (Louisville, Ohio/Louisville) (2-1) was the losing pitcher in the game as he pitched seven innings and gave up three runs (two earned) on seven hits with four walks and three strikeouts. Joe Vita (Gibsonia, Pa./Hampton) pitched a perfect eighth inning in relief and was followed by Ben Marsico (Bradfordwoods, Pa./North Allegheny), who allowed two runs on three hits in the ninth.
 
The Presidents will return to the diamond on Tuesday, March 28, when they host Westminster in a Presidents' Athletic Conference doubleheader starting at 2 p.m.