TUCSON, Ariz. – The Macalester College baseball team had a winless day in two non-conference games in the Tucson Invitational. The Scots fell to UT Dallas 13-3 in the morning and to Wesleyan University 11-7 in the afternoon. The Scots are now 3-7 overall with two more games before conference play.
Macalester took the lead early against UT Dallas, putting up three runs in the second inning. After
Braden LaChapelle (Bethesda Md./Walter Johnson) got on base with one out, a long triple to center field from
Nathan Gumagay (Potomac, Md./ Winston Churchill) drove him in. Gumagay also scored on an RBI single from
Connor Davidson (Redwood City, Calif/Woodside), his first collegiate hit and RBI. After a hit by
Ben Oberdorfer (Jacksonville, Fla./ Paxon School) moved Davidson to third, he scored on a Comets fielding error. After two, the Scots led 3-0.
Senior
Shun Mizuno (Irving, Texas/Ranchview) started the game on the mound for the Scots and kept UT Dallas quiet for the first two innings, only allowing a walk that was quickly erased by a double play. In the third inning, a double to center field fueled a two-run inning for the Comets, cutting the Scots lead. A leadoff single in the fourth for UT Dallas started a big inning that ended in an 8-3 Comets lead.
The Scots offense struggled after their third inning rally, not recording a hit for the rest of the game. The UT-Dallas starting pitcher Dylan Collins pitched a complete game, striking out 12. Macalester reliever
Ryan Przespolewski (Spring, Texas/ Oak Ridge) pitched the final 3.1 innings, allowing five runs and striking out three. The game concluded after eight innings with a final score of 13-3 to UT Dallas. Mizuno earned the loss, his first of the season.
In the second game today, Wesleyan jumped out to an early lead. Macalester starting pitcher
Ben Levinson (Piedmont, Calif./ Piedmont) got a groundout to start the game, but the Cardinals got runners on base to be driven in by a double and a groundout. The Scots responded in the bottom of the inning, as a leadoff triple from
Holden Peacock (Houston, Texas/Kinkaid School) led to a run scored on a wild pitch.
Levinson kept Wesleyan quiet in the second inning, but the Cardinals offense exploded in the third, scoring seven runs. Levinson left the game after 2.1 innings, allowing six earned runs, replaced by
Nick Strezo (San Mateo, Calif./Hillsdale). Strezo kept Wesleyan quiet for most of the game, pitching 4.2 innings without an earned run (two unearned). After the sixth inning, the score remained 9-2.
The Cardinals widened the lead in the top of the seventh, with two singles and an error creating trouble for the Scots. Down 11-2, Macalester's offense pulled the deficit back by answering with three runs of their own. After loading the bases on a single and two walks, a 2 RBI single by Peacock scored
Niko Alexander (Bethesda, Md./ Walt Whitman) and
Evan Kang (Sherman Oaks, Calif./Village Christian). After a pitching change, pinch hitter
Isaiah Ramirez (Houston, Texas/Northbrook) drove in another run with an RBI single. After seven, the Scots trailed 11-5.
Macalester pitcher
Jamie Loizeaux (Albany, Calif./ Albany) entered in relief in the eighth inning and ended the Cardinals' scoring for the night. The Scots, down six in the ninth, looked to create trouble with a leadoff walk from Gumagay. Peacock drove in the run with an RBI triple, his second three-bagger of the game, and scored on an error to cut the deficit to 11-7. After two singles to load the bases, with the tying run at the plate, the Cardinals forced a hard lineout to the pitcher to end the game.
Macalester will face Wesleyan again on Friday, Mar. 21 in Tucson at 11am CDT; 10am MST.
