GREENVILLE, Pa. (Marc 29) -- The Thiel College Baseball team totaled 31 runs and 32 hits en route to a doubleheader sweep of Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) foe Bethany College Saturday at Tomcat Park.
The Tomcats scored their most runs in a game since 2021 with game one's 20-3 victory as eight starters had RBIs. The Blue and Gold took the nightcap 11-8 in comeback fashion to improve to 6-14 (2-2). The Bison drop to 6-12 (1-5).
Game 1 -- Thiel 20, Bethany 3 (7 Innings)
The Tomcats raked five hits and pulled ahead 4-0 in the first on a
Cole Sherwin (Karns City, Pa./Karns City) 2-run single. Singles from
Max Bihler (Delaware, Ohio/Olentangy Berlin) and
Ethan Bintrim (New Castle, Pa./Shenango) opened the third and led to a
Calvin Cackowski (Wickliffe, Ohio/Wickliffe) 3-run homer, his third of the season, which made it 7-1. A
Nathen Prunty (Elyria, Ohio/Keystone) (Elyria, Ohio/Keystone) RBI double later in the frame pushed the lead to 9-1, and a Bintrim run-scoring single capped the 7-run inning and made it 11-1.
Sherwin finished 3-for-3 with a trio of RBIs, 3 runs and one walk. Prunty extended his on-base streak to 13 with a 2-for-4 showing in game one along with two RBIs and a run. Cackowski was 2-for-4 with four RBIs, 2 runs and a walk.
Bintrim tallied three hits, three runs and a RBI while Bihler was 2-for-3 with 3 runs and a walk.
Thiel added 2 more in the fourth and 1 in the fifth as
Chase Morrison (Monaca, Pa./Central Valley), Prunty and
Fletcher Hindman (Pittsburgh, Pa./Baldwin) each brought in runs.
Morrison finished with two hits and RBis each along with 3 runs and a walk. Hindman was 1-for-2 with 2 runs and a RBI.
The Tomcats closed the offensive showcase with 6 runs in the sixth inning as Sherwin,
Colton Brightwell (Eighty Four, Pa./Bentworth) and
Jack Fickes (Jeromesville, Ohio/Hillsdale) each had RBIs in the frame.
Brightwell finished with two hits and a RBI while Fickes had a run-scoring hit in his lone plate appearance.
In total, Thiel had 20 hits in the victory.
Nate Lucas (Pittsburgh, Pa./Taylor Allderdice) got the start and struck out six in six innings to collect his second win of the year and move to 2-3.
Game 2 -- Thiel 11, Bethany 8
The Tomcats put up an 8-spot in the sixth inning to erase an 8-3 deficit and lead 11-8. The Tomcats put two on with one out, leading to a Cackowski RBI double which made it 8-4. Sherwin reached on an error, bringing home another run to make it 8-5. A Hindman RBI single brought the deficit to 2 and 1 more came home on a passed ball to make it an 8-7 game. A Morrison sac fly tied things while a
Nick Jacobs (New Castle, Pa./Union) single gave Thiel a 9-8 lead. 2 more runs scampered home on an error to conclude the 8-run inning.
Cackowski was 1-for-3 with a run, RBI and walk each while Sherwin added a hit, run and RBI. Hindman was 2-for-4 with a RBI and a run while Morrison knocked in 1. Jacobs had a pair of hits and runs each along with a RBI.
Archie Teconchuk (Warren, Pa./Warren) worked two scoreless innings in the seventh and eighth. Bethany brought the tying run to the plate in the ninth with one out, but Bintrim got a pair of swinging K's to thwart the Bison's effort and seal the come-from-behind victory.
Teconchuk worked 2.2 innings in relief and allowed 1 run. He was credited with the win and improved to 2-1. Bintrim got his first save of the year with two strikeouts.
Thiel put 3 up in the bottom of the first on a Bihler 2-run double along with a Bintrim RBI single to go ahead 3-1. Bethany tied things in the fifth and scored 5 in the top of the sixth to go ahead before Thiel's comeback began.
Bihler finished 2-for-4 with 2 runs and a RBI while Bintrim had a hit, two RBIs and a run.
Nathen Prunty (Elyria, Ohio/Keystone) (Elyria, Ohio/Keystone) grew his on-base streak to 14 as he went 1-for-3 with 2 runs and a walk.
Looking Ahead
Baseball will take on Saint Vincent College Wednesday in a 1 p.m. PAC doubleheader at Tomcat Park.
