Baseball falls at Transy in pair of HCAC games

LEXINGTON, Ky. – After playing at home on Saturday, the Defiance College baseball team traveled on Sunday to face the Transylvania University Pioneers in a Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference doubleheader at Whitaker Bank Ballpark, home of the Lexington Legends. Transylvania came from behind to win the opener, 7-5, before also claiming the second game, 14-2.

Defiance got out to a 3-0 lead in the first contest before a five-run fifth put the Pioneers in front. The Yellow Jackets tied the score at 5-5 in the sixth but Transy pushed across two runs in the eighth to come away with the victory.

DC was outhit, 12-9, and made the game's only error. Each team left seven runners on base and TU was credited with six stolen bases while Defiance had none.

Colin Minner led the Yellow Jackets' offense with a 3-for-4 performance that included a triple, two doubles, three runs scored and a run batted in while Michael Reese went 2 for 4 with a double, walk and pair of runs scored. Freshman Billy McNamara singled and drove in a run with a sacrifice fly.

DC's starting pitcher, Will Bohlman, tossed six innings with four strikeouts and one walk before giving way to Tyler Hines, who threw 1.2 innings with two strikeouts but suffered the loss.

Transylvania raced out to an 11-0 advantage in game two after collecting three runs in the opening inning, six in the second and two more in the third. Defiance produced a run in the top of the fourth but the Pioneers responded by scoring twice in the bottom half and once in the fifth, establishing a 14-1 lead. The Yellow Jackets made it 14-2 in the sixth as the contest ended in the middle of the seventh.

The hosts had 15 hits to DC's six. Defiance played error-free defensively while Transy was guilty of one error. TU stranded 10 baserunners and the Yellow Jackets eight.

Minner was 1 for 2 with a hit-by-pitch and run scored for DC while Brant Richardson finished 1 for 1 with a walk. Lane Good recorded the club's only RBI with a single.

Reese made the start on the mound for Defiance and took the loss. The most effective of three relievers was freshman John Hammerstein, who pitched a perfect sixth inning with a strikeout.

The Jackets drop to 6-22 overall and in the HCAC while the Pioneers move to 19-8. DC is slated to host Manchester University in a conference matchup on Wednesday with the first pitch set at 4 p.m.