The Aquinas baseball team ran into a strong UNOH team, that was receiving votes in the top-25 poll, on Saturday (Apr. 2) at the Meijer Sports Complex in Rockford, Michigan. The Racers won 12-5 in game one as the second game has been postponed to a later date due to weather. AQ is now 11-20 (1-4 WHAC) on the season as UNOH improves to 18-8 (5-0) this year.
The Saints fell in a hole quickly in the top of the first inning as the Racers scored six runs before AQ had a chance at the plate.
Conor Gausselin started on the hill and fell to 3-2 on the year after recording two outs and allowing six runs (five earned) on three hits and five walks.
Kyle Teachworth came in to settle things down and ended up pitching the next three and one third innings. Teachworth surrendered two runs in the third inning to UNOH on two hits and two walks, while striking out four.
AQ got on the board in the third inning as a
Mark Binkowski singled and both
Kelvin Aracena and
Dane Smitz walked to load the bases. One out walks by
Nathan Hughes and
Braden Nawrocki brought in the two runs to cut the deficit to seven.
The UNOH lead continued to dwindle in the fourth inning as the Saints scored another two runs. A
Jake Paganelli walk and a
Braden Brown infield single set the table for Binkowski, who doubled to left field as
Anthony Arnold (pinch ran for Paganelli) scored. Brown trotted across home plate after
Grant Martin lifted a sacrifice fly to center field.
Aquinas got one more run in the sixth inning as Smitz brought in a run on a single to center field that brought in
Owen Graves.
Caden Gregory picked up two strikeouts on the hill the fifth inning, then
Riki Yokoyama came in to get the last out and pitch a scoreless sixth. After Yokoyama gave up two runs on a hit and a hit by pitch before getting an out in the seventh,
James Wubben came in to record the final three outs and allowed one run on a hit and two walks.
Binkowski finished a perfect 3-3 at the plate with Brown also collecting two hits and five separate players collecting an RBI.
The Saints will be back in action tomorrow (Apr. 3) against Indiana Tech with the doubleheader beginning at 1:00 PM on the campus of Cornerstone at De Witt Field.
