WASHINGTON, Pa. – Justin Griffin (Lombard, Ill./Glenbard East) capped the season sweep of Thomas More for the Washington & Jefferson baseball team with a walk-off single in the bottom of the ninth inning of game two of a Presidents' Athletic Conference doubleheader on Saturday, March 31.
 
Griffin's game-winning RBI gave the Presidents a 6-5 win following a 10-3 win in game one, led by Bryce Schnatterly (Cranberry Township, Pa./Seneca Valley) on the mound. The two wins improves W&J to 11-8 overall this season and 4-0 in league play while the Saints fall to 5-10 overall and 2-2 in the PAC. It is the first time that W&J has had a regular season sweep of Thomas More since going 3-0 against the Saints in 2014.
 
The bottom of the ninth inning of game two began with the Presidents trailing by a score of 5-4. With one out, Dan Trettel (Wexford, Pa./North Allegheny) reached safely on a throwing error and scored two batters later on a two-out Mark Merlino (Irwin, Pa./Penn-Trafford) double to right-center field.
 
After Joey Bolick (Gibsonia, Pa./Pine-Richland) replaced Merlino at second as a pinch runner, Griffin looped a 2-2 pitch into right field which allowed Bolick to score the winning run for the Presidents' fourth walk-off win of the season and their fifth win in their final at-bat.
 
The Saints struck first in the game, getting on the board with one run in the first inning followed by three runs on four hits in the top of the third. W&J answered back with three runs on four hits, as well, in the bottom of the frame. Trettel singled in Mullen Socha (Independence, Ohio/St. Ignatius) with one out and came around to score two batters later on a sacrifice fly by Merlino. After Griffin was hit by a pitch, Spencer Howell (Oakwood, Ohio/Oakwood) singled to left field to bring in Ryan Sciullo (Vandergrift, Pa./Kiski Area), who reached on a single after Trettel's at-bat.
 
In the fifth inning, Griffin tied the game with his first career home run as the junior catcher deposited the 1-1 offering over the left-center field fence.
 
Thomas More took a 5-4 lead in the top of the ninth inning on two hits and a W&J error before the Presidents' rally in the bottom of the frame.
 
In game one, Socha and Trettel reached base to lead off the bottom of the first inning. After moving up to third base on a double play, Socha came across home on a Merlino single to center.
 
The Saints were quick to respond as they scored two runs in the next half inning to take their only lead of the game, 2-1.
 
Howell led off the bottom of the second inning with his team-leading third home run of the season, and the third of his career, on the first pitch he saw to tie the game at two runs per side. Shayne Erny (North Ridgeville, Ohio/St. Edward) then singled to left field and advanced to third on a fielder's choice and an error, allowing the hitter, Adam Jaworski (Canonsburg, Pa./Peters Township), to reach base.
 
Luke Zahren (Ingomar, Pa./North Allegheny) proceeded to reach on a fielder's choice to first base with Erny being tagged out at home trying to score. After Socha reached on an error to load the bases with one out, Sciullo singled home Jaworski to put the Presidents out in front, 3-2. Two more runs came across home plate on an error with two outs as W&J gained a 5-2 edge.
 
Both starting pitchers settled in as each of the next three innings went scoreless before the Presidents scored four more times in the bottom of the sixth inning. With Zahren standing on second base and one out, Trettel singled to left center to bring Zahren in. Trettel advanced to second on the play on the throw home and was brought around to score when Sciullo singled down the right-field line.
 
After Sciullo stole second base, Merlino singled up the middle to score Sciullo and moved to second on the throw home. Two batters later, Merlino scored on a single to right from Howell.
 
The Presidents scored their final run of the game in the bottom of the seventh on an RBI double to left center before the Saints tacked on their final run in the top of the ninth inning.
 
Schnatterly scattered eight hits over 8.0 innings and allowed two earned runs with one walk and six strikeouts to improve to 3-0 this season, with seven of his eight innings being scoreless.
 
Howell and Trettel both recorded three hits in the first game to lead a group of five Presidents with multiple hits in the game. The pair also drove in two runs and scored once while Merlino had a team-high three RBI with a run scored. Sciullo drove in two and scored once and Zahren, who was one of the five players with multiple hits, scored three times.
 
Game two also saw five Presidents have multiple hits starting with Socha and Sciullo at the top of the order who had two hits and a run scored apiece. Merlino and Griffin finished the game with two hits and two RBI each and Dante Dalesandro (Pittsburgh, Pa./Mount Lebanon) went 2-for-3.
 
Matt Heslin (McDonald, Pa./Fort Cherry) started on the mound for the Presidents in the second game and earned a no decision after going 3.0 innings and allowing four runs on eight hits. Santino Platt (Pittsburgh, Pa./OLSH) pitched the next three innings without allowing a run with one walk and four strikeouts. Mitchell Taufer (Washington, Pa./Bishop Canevin) and Clay Martin (Canonsburg, Pa./Canon-McMillan) pitched scoreless seventh and eighth innings, respectively, before Will Bowser (Burgettstown, Pa./Madonna (W.Va.)) gave up one unearned run in the top of the ninth inning. Bowser recorded all three outs in the ninth via strikeout and earned the win to improve to 3-0.
 
The Presidents will continue PAC play on Wednesday, April 4, with a home doubleheader against Saint Vincent beginning at 1:00 p.m.

Highlights: 
Griffin ties game two with his first career home run

BA: Justin Griffin ties the game, 4-4, with a solo home run in the bottom of the fifth, the first long ball of his career #prezpride #d3b pic.twitter.com/ipbLrXEEVN

— Washington & Jefferson Athletics (@wjathletics) March 31, 2018

Griffin wins it for W&J in the bottom of the ninth with a single to right

BA: Griffin finishes his monster game with this walk-off single to right field, scoring Joey Bolick from second with two outs, to give the Presidents a 6-5 win and season sweep of Thomas More #prezpride #d3b pic.twitter.com/3x4OWulsfa

— Washington & Jefferson Athletics (@wjathletics) March 31, 2018