Erie, PA—After losing 3-0 and 6-5 yesterday to Gannon, the Mercyhurst Baseball team defended their home turf as they swept the Golden Knights on Saturday by scores of 4-2 and 7-2.
Game One (W, 4-2)
Jack Elliott started the day off with a bang as he took the third pitch he saw in the bottom of the first and put it over the right centerfield wall to put the Lakers up one early.
Vincenzo Lucente got the nod on the bump today and went 3.1 innings and earned the win. He had three strikeouts while allowing three hits and working around two walks. Along with three strikeouts Lucente allowed his infielders to do their jobs and recorded five groundouts in the outing.
In the bottom of the second inning Luke Jackson decided he wanted to do his home run trot as he hit a three-run homer to put the Lakers out front 4-0 after just two innings.
Chase Stewart was tasked with the job of getting the Lakers out of jam in which Gannon had runners on first and second with just one out. Stewart needed just three pitches to get the Golden Knights to ground into a 4-6-3 double play and keep the score at 4-2.
After Stewart pitched a scoreless inning, Michael Krauza came into the keep the Golden Knights off the board. Krauza would face five batters and retire all five while allowing no hits.
Jack Goonan came in to the shut door in the seventh inning. Goonan needed just 13 pitches to close out the Golden Knights and secure his third save of the season and the first PSAC win of the season for the Lakers.
Game Two (W, 7-2)
In the second game, Gannon struck first in the top of the first but were held to just one run after Justin Studd came out of the bullpen and got a flyout on one pitch.
In the bottom of the first after a leadoff walk from Troy Banks, Elliott decided one homer on the day wasn't enough. He muscled one out opposite field to put the Lakers ahead 2-1 after one full inning of play.
Gannon would tie game in the third but that would be the last time they crossed the plate this afternoon, the Lakers however, weren't even close to being done.
Banks would start the bottom of the third with a leadoff single. Elliott came to plate once again looking for his second homer of the game and third of the day. Elliott swung at the 0-1 pitch, and everyone in the ballpark knew it was gone, even the right fielder who took one step and stopped to watch it fly over the high fence in right field.
In the sixth inning the Lakers would add some insurance runs. It started with a Matthew Gibson leadoff double and a Jordan Zilka hit by a pitch. Back-to-back-to-back singles from Banks, Elliott, and Philip Ferranti the Lakers would push the lead to 7-2.
Brett Whiteman would come in after Studd and pitch three scoreless innings in which he allowed no hits and just one walk while striking out four. Goonan would once again come in to shut it down, he needed 16 pitches in the seventh to close the book on Gannon.
What a Day at the Plate
The Lakers hit four home runs today, Jackson got his second of his rookie campaign. Elliott was able to get his fourth, fifth, and sixth while also becoming the first player to hit multiple home runs in game since March 13th, 2019.
Team Leaders
Batting Average: Ferranti .385, Banks, Gibson .333, Tyler Zaluski .320, Jackson .310
Home Runs: Elliott 6, Banks 4, Zaluski, Jackson, John Susnik 2
RBI: Elliott 19, Josh Surowiec 12, Jackson 11, Banks, Zaluski 9
Runs: Banks 20, Elliott 14, Zaluski 11, Gibson 10
ERA (4 appearances min): Goonan 1.80, Krauza 1.86, Stewart 2.08, Whiteman 2.70
Strikeouts: Krauza 23, Michael McDonough 20, Lucente, Frank Fraschetti 14, Hunter Treece 10
Up Next
The Lakers will continue PSAC play as they host UPJ on Friday next weekend before traveling to Johnstown on Saturday.
