Statesmen Split with Moundbuilders

Winfield, Kansas – The Statesmen baseball team notched a victory over Southwestern in a nonconference doubleheader Wednesday.

WPU (6-2) won the opener 8-6 but dropped the nightcap to the Moundbuilders (4-8) despite a comeback atttempt, 9-7.

WPU 8, Southwestern 6

William Penn went up 1-0 over the Moundbuilders in the first inning when Shane Mailloux (So., Santee, Calif., Business Management) scored on a single to center field by Keoni Young (Sr., Las Vegas, Nev., Exercise Science).

Southwestern responded with a run of its own to tie the game in the bottom of the inning.

The Statesmen regained the lead when Andres Pineda (Sr., Cartagena, Colombia, Business Management) reached first on an error, allowing Albert Jaquez (Jr., Gurnee, Ill., Kinesiology) to score an unearned run. McGwire Jephson (Jr., Rigby, Idaho, Business Management) then grounded out as Jagger Mitchell (Sr., Rock Springs, Wyo., Business Management) came across for another unearned run.

Logan Bialek (Jr., South Elgin, Ill., Exercise Science) scored another unearned run for WPU in the bottom of the third when Mitchell reached first on an error to extend the lead to 4-1.

The Moundbuilders scored five runs over the third and fourth innings to take a 6-4 lead.

WPU tied the ballgame when Abraham Arroyo (Grad., Camuy, P.R., Master's of Sports Management) hit a two-RBI single to score Pineda and Jephson.

With two outs in the inning, Aiden North (Jr., Oskaloosa, Iowa, Industrial Technology) delivered a two-RBI double to left field that allowed Arroyo and Mailloux to score.

Andrei Gordeev (Sr., Balashikha, Russia, Business Management) held the Moundbuilders off the scoreboard in the sixth and seventh innings to earn the win for William Penn.

Eight Statesmen produced a base hit in the victory, with Mailloux and North tallying two. Jephson drew two walks.

North and Arroyo had a team-high two RBIs, while Mailloux scored a team-high two runs.

Gordeev came on in the fourth inning and earned the win. He held Southwestern scoreless on two hits, one walk, and five strikeouts.

WPU 9, Southwestern 7

The Statesmen faced seven different pitchers in a 9-7 loss in the second contest against the Moundbuilders.

WPU scored in the top of the first inning when Young reached first on a fielder's choice and allowed Jephson to score.

Southwestern responded with five runs in the bottom of the inning to take an early lead.

Jephson later reached first base on a fielder's choice as Ened Perez (Jr., Orocovis, P.R., Kinesiology) scored.

After the Moundbuilders scored another run in the bottom of the second, the teams went scoreless in the third before William Penn erupted in the fourth inning.

Jephson scored on a sacrifice fly from Young. Mailloux followed him home when North hit an RBI single up the middle. Perez tied the contest at 6-6 with a two-run double before Arroyo singled to right field to score Jephson and give William Penn a 7-6 lead.

The Statesmen allowed Southwestern to score three runs in the bottom of the sixth inning to take a 9-7 lead that it held on to until the final out.

Perez went 2-for-4 with a pair of RBI doubles to lead the Statesmen at the plate. Jephson scored three runs, while he and Sawyer Hardman (Jr., American Fork, Utah, Kinesiology) each drew two walks.

Anthony Estrada (Jr., Santa Clarita, Calif., Political Science) pitched well in the contest seeing three innings of work for three hits, three unearned runs, with a walk and five strikeouts. taking the loss.

"Some guys really struggled at times with their approach with situational hitting." Head Coach Mike Laird said. "North had a huge 2 out double to put us up 8 to 6 in the first game. Southwestern managed only one extra base hit in the 2 games, but we're assisted by the amount of uncharacteristic walks we issued them. We're disappointed but we'll recover next week.""

Next Up: William Penn returns home Tuesday to face Hannibal-LaGrange in a nonconference doubleheader beginning at noon.