Jackson, MS 2/25/2023- The Westminster College baseball team was back in action on Saturday for day 2 of the Millsaps Baseball Classic. They took on the hosts Millsaps in the first game and would lose 8-1. They would need extra innings in game two vs Edgewood College to decide a winner. The Blue Jays would hold off a late Eagles rally and win the game 4-3 in 10 innings.
Game 1-vs Millsaps College: Box Score
Trent Morrow (Russellville, Mo. / Russellville) got the start on the mound in the first game of the day for the Blue Jays. He would have a rough start to his 2023 campaign as he would go three and two-thirds innings, giving up nine hits and five earned runs. The Blue Jays would commit errors that resulted in two more runs being scored. The Majors would score three runs in the first inning and then four more in the fourth to take a 7-0 lead. They would score their eighth run in the fifth. The Blue Jays would score their lone run in the game at the top of the sixth. The Blue Jays would make a little noise in the sixth inning with Steven Diaz (Highland, Il. / Highland) getting on with a single to left. He would then steal second base. Troy Romero (Trophy Club, TX / Byron Nelson) would draw a walk to put runners on first and second. Payton Whitehead (Belleville, Il. / Belleville West) would step to the dish and deliver an RBI single down the left field line, scoring Diaz. He would then get caught stealing for the second out of the inning and then the Blue Jays would strike out to end the inning. Millsaps would win the game with a final score of 8-1.
Game 2- vs Edgewood College: Box Score
The second game of the day was a rematch from last night which the Blue Jays ran away with a 14-2 win. The game on Saturday would be a much more competitive game. Freshman hurler Derek Archer (St. Charles, Mo / Francis Howell North) would get his first career start for the Blue Jays. He would go five innings with five strikeouts, and five hits and gave up a run. He would give up that run in the bottom of the first inning as the Eagles attacked the young freshman to start the game. They would lead the game off with a single to left. The number two hitter followed that up with a single past the shortstop and starts the game with runners on first and second. Edgewood would then do a double steal to get runners on second and third. The Eagles would score on a sacrifice fly to left field to go 1-0. Archer would get out of the inning with a double play ball and did a good job of limiting the damage.
The Blue Jay offense would pick him up in the top of the second. Spencer Keiser (Old Monroe, Mo / Winfield) started the inning with a double to right field. Ryan Mills (Festus, Mo / Hancock) laid down a sacrifice bunt to move Keiser up to third base. Jason Pesold (Arnold, MO / St. Pius X) would hit a sacrifice fly to right and scored Keiser to tie the game up 1-1. The Blue Jays would strike again in the top of the third with one out in the inning. Romero would single to left field, then advance up to second base on a wild pitch. Whitehead would reach on an error by the Eagles and Romero moved up to third base. Skyler Bushey (Saint Albans, Vt / Bellows Free Academy) scored Romero with a sacrifice fly to center field to take a 2-1 lead.
The Blue Jays were playing a little fundamental baseball and some small ball to manufacture runs. Pitching would take over in the 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th innings, as neither team could get much going in those innings. The Blue Jays' offense would score again in the top of the 9th after Pesold hit a two-out single to right field. Matt Lukins (Clark, Mo / Rock Bridge) singled up the middle to put runners on first and second. Diaz stepped to the plate and hit an RBI single to left field to score Pesold to put Westminster up 3-1. The Eagles would score two runs in the bottom of the 9th to tie the game 3-3 and force the game to extra innings. Austin Mayton (Wentzville, Mo. / Fort Zumwalt North) came to bat with 2 outs and hit a single to right field. Keiser then came up to the plate and roped a triple down the right field line to score Mayton and put the Blue Jays up 4-3 in the 10th.
Romero, who started the game at second base, came in to pitch in the bottom of the ninth and he would take the mound in the bottom of the 10th with the game on the line. He would give up a lead-off single and the runner would advance to second after an error by the Blue Jays. The Eagles would put down a sacrifice bunt to move the runner-up to third. Romero would shut the door on Edgewood as he got a ground ball to third for the second out of the inning and then showed a little pitcher fielding practice as he ran to first to get the final out of the game after a ground ball to the first baseman. Romero gets his first career win after pitching the final two innings and getting his first career strikeout.
The Blue Jays improve to 2-1 on the season and will be back in action on Tuesday, February 28th when they travel to Topeka, Kansas for a game against Nebraska Wesleyan.
