HOUGHTON, NY— The Houghton Highlanders rode their pitching and defense to a pair of victories in their home opener, defeating the Pitt-Bradford Panthers, 6-0 and 5-1.
 
GAME VITALS                           
Game 1 Score: Pitt-Bradford – 0 | Houghton – 6
Game 2 Score: Pitt-Bradford – 1 | Houghton – 5
Records: Pitt-Bradford: 3-4 | Houghton: 2-8
Venue: Kerr-Pegula Athletic Complex, Houghton University | Attendance: 60/70
 
Game 1:
Ethan Cetton tossed a complete game shutout, scattering seven hits and allowing only one walk, while striking out six.
 
The bulk of the Highlanders' damage came in the bottom of the third inning.  With two runs already across, and two outs, Kanta Ueno laced an RBI single to right.  Then Ueno and Chris VanCheri pulled off a perfectly executed double-steal to score VanCheri, before Mason Sutherland crushed a triple into the right-center gap, pushing Ueno home with the fifth run of the inning.
 
Houghton would add an insurance run in the bottom of the sixth after Ueno once again singled and Sutherland followed with a double to left, putting runners on second and third.  Dylan Boprey followed with an RBI groundout.
 
Game 2:
Four Houghton pitchers combined for the second win of the day, needing only 84 pitches, striking out four and allowing only two hits and one unearned run, which came in the final inning of play.
 
Mark Lewandowski, who started and threw only the first two innings by design, picked up his first collegiate victory.
 
Houghton struck in the first inning after Ueno and Sutherland hit back-to-back RBI singles, scoring Vincent Lucyszyn and Ian Slate.
 
The Highlanders scored three more in the bottom of the third on a bases-loaded walk, a balk, and a sacrifice fly by Slate.
 
That would be all the runs Houghton would need to secure their second win of the day.  The Panthers would score their lone run in the top of the seventh on a passed ball, but would come no closer.
 
KEY STATS:
>> Houghton did not commit a single fielding error on the day, while the Panthers made on two.
 
>> Ueno, Sutherland and VanCheri all collected three hits on the day.  VanCheri also collected two walks and a hit by pitch.
 
>> The Highlanders turned four double-plays on the day, one in the first game and three in the second.
 
COACH'S CORNER:
"It was good to see our team rebound from a tough southern trip in our home opener today.  We had excellent pitching and defense, and we had some big hits when we needed them.
 
"All of our pitchers threw well today, but it was probably most gratifying to see Ethan [Cetton] return to form.  He had a couple of rough outings to open the season, so to see him dominate the strike zone the way he did was uplifting, for him and for all of us.
 
"These were good team wins that reflected what I believe is the true nature of this team." – Head Coach Brian Reitnour 
 
UP NEXT:
The Highlanders head south to Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania this weekend to take on the Messiah Falcons in a doubleheader on their home turf on Saturday at noon.  With the potential of rain in the forecast, stay tuned for possible changes.