ANNVILLE, Pa. –
Tyler Horvat (Irwin, Pa./Penn-Trafford) finished with two hits, scored a pair of runs and tossed six strong innings of relief to guide No. 24 Washington & Jefferson to a 5-1 win over Lebanon Valley College to open NCAA Division III Regional play Friday.
The win advances W&J (36-8 overall) to face against No. 10 Rowan at 12 p.m. on Saturday at McGill Field in Annville, Pa. Rowan improved to 31-8 overall with a 7-1 win over Mitchell earlier in the day on Friday. Lebanon Valley and Mitchell open the action Saturday with an elimination game at 8:30 a.m.
The W&J and LVC game spanned more than five hours in length after a two-plus hour weather delay. All five runs W&J scored came with two outs.
After W&J starter
Henry Litman (Marietta, Ga./Walton) retired the side in the top of the first inning, W&J struck first with a run in the bottom of the frame off LVC starter Kyle Kingsbury. Horvat produced a leadoff single and eventually scored on a two-out RBI single by
Evan Sante (Pittsburgh, Pa./Plum).
The Dutchmen threatened after a leadoff double in the top of the second. However, Litman retired the next three hitters in order to keep LVC off the board. Litman punched out a pair of Dutchmen to escape, which including getting Luke Blair looking to end the threat.
After a rain delay of more than two hours, a wild pitch by LVC reliever Tommy Moore Jr. scored Horvat to give W&J a 2-0 lead after three innings of play.
LVC got a run back in the top of the fifth inning when Ryan Murphy produced a RBI single to cut the Dutchmen's deficit to 2-1. Horvat was able to strand a pair of Dutchmen on base to escape further damage.
W&J had a chance to add an insurance run in the bottom of the seventh inning.
Roman Samson (Tampa, Fla./Berkeley Prep) led off with a single and advanced to second base on a sac bunt by
Trevor Dean (San Diego, Calif./Rancho Bernardo). With Samson advancing to third base on a flyout, it sent the stage for him to score on a balk that scored Samson to give W&J a 3-1 lead.
Samson produced again in the eighth inning. W&J loaded the bases after two outs and Samson delivered a two-run two-out single down the left field line to score
Nate Rush (Wheeling, W.Va./The Linsly School) and
Peter Kalinski (Washington, D.C. / Saint John's College). The clutch hit by Samson allowed W&J to carry a 5-1 lead into the ninth.
Making his first appearance in relief in 2022, Horvat tossed six innings to earn the victory. He is 8-1 on the mound this season. Horvat did not allow a hit over the final four innings. Litman allowed just one hit and struck out three over three scoreless innings before the weather delay cut his day short early.
Horvat and Samson finished with two hits apiece to pace W&J offensively.
The W&J senior class improved its record in postseason play to 17-4.
