LANGHORNE, PA— Down to the final out, Wayne Rode launched a three-run blast over the right field wall to lift the Houghton Highlanders to a game two win, 3-2, salvaging a split with the Cairn Highlanders, who took game one, 5-2.
Game One:
Cairn struck early, scoring three runs in the bottom of the second inning on a double down the left field line and a two-run error.
The home team scored two more in the third after an infield single, a double to deep center, a sacrifice fly and a single to left, putting them up, 5-0.
Houghton finally found an offensive rhythm in the sixth, plating two after back-to-back-to-back doubles by Wayne Rode, Caleb Philips and Zach Parr, but failed to pull closer.
In the bottom of the seventh, Houghton freshman Jason Kauffeldt tripled to the base of the right-center fence in his first collegiate at bat, but again the visitors left him stranded in scoring position as Cairn closed out the game with a soft line drive and a strike out.
Griffin Tubbs tossed all six innings for Houghton, giving up six hits and only one walk, while striking out four and allowing three earned runs.
Parr finished 2-for-3 with a double and a triple.
Game Two:
Cairn again struck early, touching up Houghton starter Holden Deres for two runs in the first. After a one-out infield single, Mike Sorowice doubled to center and scored two batters later on a single right.
Deres would settle in from that point on, allowing only one hit and two walks over the next four frames.
Houghton put runners on in each of the first five innings but failed to score.
In the sixth, Aaron Monroe replaced Deres, tossing a 1-2-3 inning to keep Houghton within striking distance entering the seventh.
After Kauffeldt lined out to deep left to lead off the inning, a hit-by-pitch put Jared Couch on first. David Wessells followed with a bunt single to third. A strike out put Cairn one out away from the sweep, and Rode quickly went down 0-2. Rode laid off an inside slider but crushed the 1-2 offering to deep right field, giving Houghton their first lead of the day.
Couch took the bump in the bottom of the seventh, allowing only one baserunner, and picking up his first collegiate save.
GAME VITALS
Game 1 Score: Houghton – 2 | Cairn – 5
Game 2 Score: Houghton – 3 | Cairn – 2
Records: Houghton: 1-1 | Cairn: 2-4
Venue: | Attendance: 65/70
KEY STATS:
>> In game one, Houghton collected six hits, five of which went for extra bases.
>> Rode finished 3-for-4 in Game Two, while Wessells picked up his first two hits of the season. Wessells needs only 19 more hits to become the all-time leader in Houghton baseball history.
COACH'S CORNER:
"For the most part, I thought we played well in a lot of areas, today. We had two solid starting pitching performances, and a couple good relief outings in game two. Our defense played pretty well, too, especially in the second game.
"Our offense scuffled a bit, which is somewhat to be expected when you haven't seen pitching outside since October. We had a hard time stringing at bats together, but we got the big hit when we needed it most, and that counts for something.
"I'm proud of the way our guys came out on day one. Tomorrow will be tough, but we're looking forward to playing some more baseball and working to improve." –Coach
Brian Reitnour
UP NEXT:
Originally scheduled to play a doubleheader tomorrow, Houghton and Cairn meet again tomorrow at 1:00pm for a single nine-inning game after forecasted cold temperatures and wind forced the coaches to amend the schedule.
