March 30th, 2024 by WCBC Radio
Frostburg State Baseball team used their powerhouse offense to sweep West Virginia Wesleyan at home on Friday afternoon by final scores of 22-5 and 21-3. Junior Jacob McDonald got the nod to start game one, stranding one runner on base for WVWC in the top of the first. Frostburg got moving early on in their first look at offense, with senior Ethan Kiple sending one over the fence for a quick 1-0 FSU lead. Junior Mikey Guy then singled to left field, stole second, advanced to third on a fly ball from freshman Jackson Schalick, and was able to sneak in to score on a passed ball to bring the game to 2-0 after the first inning.
WVWC got one back in the top half of the second, as Frostburg's offense exploded for five runs on four hits in the bottom half of the inning. Senior Lucas Gulczynski was walked to start the inning, advancing to second on a single from senior Stafford Allison. Senior Justin Jimenez then reached on a fielder's choice, as Gulczynski came in to score on a sacrifice fly from junior Danny Estrada. Kiple then ripped an RBI single to right, scoring Jimenez, as Guy roped a single in the next at-bat. Both Kiple and Guy advanced a base on a passed ball before freshman Ryan Bouma was walked to load the bases. Schalick then knocked a bases clearing double, bringing the score to 7-1 after two innings.
McDonald saw a 1-2-3 inning from the mound in the third, as FSU continued their success on offense, increasing their lead to 11-1. Jimenez was hit by a pitch for Frostburg's first base runner of the inning, stealing second, and advancing to third on a passed ball. Estrada was then walked, as for the second time in game one, Kiple smacked a home run over the outfield fence to see FSU's lead at 10-1. Guy continued his hot streak from the plate, roping a single to center field, coming home to score on an RBI single to left from junior Ben Weiman for Frostburg's final run of the frame.
With McDonald still on the mound to start the fourth, Wesleyan tacked on another run to their total, as FSU went for another three runs in the bottom half of the inning. Jimenez drew a walk to kick things off, advancing to second on an Estrada walk, and both advancing on another passed ball. With a bases-loaded opportunity, Jimenez scored as Guy reached on a fielder's choice, pushing the score to 12-2. Bouma then reached on an error by WVWC, as Estrada was able to trot home. Schalick then hit an RBI single to left field, allowing Guy to cross home plate for a 14-2 ballgame.
Wesleyan pushed for another run in their at-bats of the fifth, as Frostburg responded with two more runs of their own. Gulczynski led off the bottom of the fifth with a walk, as Allison was then hit by a pitch to put two runners on for FSU. Jimenez then knotted a single to left, advancing both runners a base, as Gulczynski came in to score on an RBI single from freshman Brian Scott. Freshman Logan Helser then put the ball in play, allowing Jimenez to come into score, putting Frostburg at a 16-3 advantage heading into the sixth inning.
Freshman Evan Biddle came in to pitch to start the sixth, facing four batters and recording a strikeout, as junior Cael Huyer got the last two outs of the inning for FSU, picking up a strikeout as well. Freshman Tiernan Daly led off the bottom half of sixth with a triple down the left field line, coming into score on a groundout from junior Christian Shertzer. Gulczynski then reached base once more, being hit by a pitch, as senior Nick Trey singled to left field to advance Gulczynski to second. Both Gulczynski and Trey moved up a base on a wild pitch, as Jimenez was walked once more to load the bags. Scott then knotted another single to left field, scoring Jimenez, as with bases loaded again for Frostburg, Helser cracked a grand slam to put four more runs on the board, seeing the game at 22-3. Freshman Bryce Hendricks threw for FSU in the top half of the seventh, as Wesleyan went for two runs to bring the final score to 22-5 in game one.
The game one win marked the 100th FSU victory for Head Coach Anthony Williams in his fifth season at the helm of the program, becoming the fourth coach in school history to reach the milestone.
Senior Max Proctor received the go from the mound to start game two, seeing the minimum of three batters in his first look. Frostburg kept the same offensive momentum from game one, knocking two hits for three runs in their first at-bats. Guy started things with an infield single, as Bouma was walked, pushing Guy up a base. Schalick then reached on an error by Wesleyan, as both Guy and Bouma came home to score. Helser then ripped an RBI single to center field to bring Schalick in for a 3-0 game after one.
WVWC scored two runs in the second, as Proctor stranded one runner on base to keep FSU in the lead heading into the bottom half of the inning. Allison kicked off the bottom of the second with a single to center field, as Jimenez blasted one over the fence for a two-run homer and a 5-2 game. To add two more runs to Frostburg's score, Kiple and Guy proceeded to hit back-to-back solo home runs, seeing the score at 7-2. Proctor stranded one more runner in the top of the third, as Wesleyan got another run back for a 7-3 game, as FSU's offense proceeded to erupt for seven runs on four hits in the bottom of the third. Allison reached on a fielder's choice, stealing second, and advancing to third on a passed ball. Jimenez then drew a walk, as Estrada knocked a two RBI double to score both Allison and Jimenez. Kiple then drew a walk as well, stealing second, allowing Estrada to steal third and cross home plate on the throw. Guy continued to put up hits, scoring Kiple, as the former then scored on an RBI double from Schalick, allowing the score to read 12-3. Helser was then hit by a pitch, with Shertzer being walked, as with another bases loaded opportunity, Allison shot a double down the right field line to bring in two more runs for a 14-3 game heading into the fourth inning.
Junior Todd Murphy saw an opportunity from the mound in the top of the fourth, seeing three batters for three quick outs. FSU continued to tack on the runs, with Kiple hitting a single to left
field, advancing to third on a double to center field by Guy. Both proceeded to score on an RBI double to left field from Bouma, pushing the score to 16-3. Helser recorded another hit, with Bouma advancing to third, eventually crossing home plate on a fielder's choice from Shertzer. Freshman Cole Carter crossed home plate on a passed ball after being hit by a pitch earlier in the inning, as Shertzer came in to score as well on an RBI single from Jimenez, allowing the score to read 19-3.
Freshman Jack Ray picked up a strikeout from the bump in the fifth inning, as Frostburg recorded a hit in the bottom half of the inning but did not score in an inning for the first time the entire day. Junior Nate Vermillion got the nod for the sixth, putting WVWC down in order, as FSU tacked on two more runs in their at-bats of the sixth. Shertzer and Trey ripped back-to-back singles, with the fomer scoring on an RBI single from Scott, as Gulczynski then saw a double to left field, bringing in Trey from second to see a 21-3 ballgame. In the top of the seventh, graduate Ben Vok came in to pitch, striking out the side to capture the 21-3 victory for FSU in game two.
Frostburg combined for 43 total runs on the day with 36 hits at 16 walks. Guy led the way for FSU with seven total hits, including a perfect 4-for-4 trip from the plate in game one, going for a total of three RBI and eight runs as well. Kiple was right behind him with six hits, three of them home runs, also earning a perfect trip from the plate with a 3-for-3 look in game one, with six runs and six total RBI as well. Five other Bobcats recorded three hits or more, as 14 total players for Frostburg were credited with at least one hit. McDonald earned the win in game one for his fourth of the season, throwing five innings, giving up five hits and three runs while striking out three. Murphy was credited with the win in game two, his first of the season, with the pitching staff in game two combining for eight strikeouts, and the unit in game one going for seven.
With the wins, FSU improves to 17-7 on the season, while Wesleyan drops to 9-12. Frostburg will remain at home, welcoming in Seton Hill (Pa.) on Tuesday, April 2 for a single nine-inning game set for 3 PM. For more information and updates, please visit frostburgsports.com.
