TUCSON, Ariz. – The Macalester College baseball team split its final two games on Saturday at the Tucson Invitational, held at the Kino Sports Complex. The Scots head north with an 8-6 record after beating Illinois Institute of Technology, 8-1 and losing to Oberlin, 9-5.
In the win over Illinois Tech, Macalester gave up a run in the top of the first inning before putting four runs on the board in the bottom of the first. Junior
Nick McMullen (Payson, Ariz./Payson) doubled to plate junior
Alex Baretta (Pittsburgh, Pa./Central Catholic), then came home on a single by junior
Collin Brantner (Farmington, Conn./Kingswood Oxford). Sophomore
Graham Low (Piedmont, Calif./Piedmont) tripled to score Brantner, then scored on an error for a 4-1 Scots' lead.
In the bottom of the third, Macalester extended its lead to 8-1 with four runs. Junior
Ben Castagnetti (Bethesda, Md./Walt Whitman) had an RBI single, and senior
Quentin Stuart (Nashville, Ind./Nashville) tripled home Castagnetti in the inning.
Two Scots pitchers combined to hold Illinois Tech to one run on nine hits. Senior
Dylan Edwards-Gaherty (New Yor, N.Y./Columbia Grammar & Prep) started and earned the win, allowing a run on six hits while walking two and striking out five in five innings. Sophomore
Thomas Shogren (Woodbury, Minn./Minnehaha Academy) pitched four scoreless innings of relief, giving up just three hits while fanning three and walking one to earn the save. McMullen and Castagnetti each had two hits in the win.
Against Oberlin, Macalester answered two runs by the Yeomen in the top of the second inning with three runs of their own. Low and Brantner scored on a mishandled fly ball hit by Stuart, and Castagnetti came home on an error. Oberlin pushed four runs across in the top of the fourth, two more in the seventh and another run in the eighth to take a commanding 9-3 lead. A single by Castagnetti in the eighth brought home McMullen, and McMullen scored on an error in the ninth to close out the scoring.
Both McMullen and Castagnetti finished with two hits apiece.
The Scots return to action on Mar. 29 with a home doubleheader against UW-Superior at Nicholson Field.
