ROCK HILL, SC – Tyler Cook's RBI single with one out in the bottom of the ninth gave the Winthrop baseball team a 5-4 victory over the Toledo Rockets on Friday afternoon at The Winthrop Ballpark, on the second day of the Johnny Gill Memorial.
The Eagles improve to 8-4 on the season, while the Rockets drop to 6-5 on the season. Toledo also dropped a 3-2 decision to the Canisius Griffins on Friday.
“It was a good win for us,” said head coach Joe Hudak. “We needed a win; it has been awhile since we won.”
Tommy Lawrence (2-0) earned the victory pitching 1.2 innings and allowed no runs on one hit, no walks and one strikeout. Mike Inselmann (0-1) took the loss surrendering one run on one hit, two walks and no strikeouts in one-third of an inning pitched.
“Tommy Lawrence threw really well,” Hudak said. “He gave us a chance to get a win, and we were able to get it. I liked the way he threw tonight in a pressure situation.”
Inselmann came on in relief of Tyler Scott to begin the ninth inning, and began by allowing a leadoff walk to Tyler McBride on four pitches. Adam Gliebe moved McBride over to second with his sacrifice bunt, and Max Vogel followed by being intentionally walked. Vogel entered the game to pinch-hit for Tyler Donovan. The base hit by Cook capped off a solid day for the second baseman as he had a team-high two hits on the afternoon to go along with two RBI.
The Rockets got on the scoreboard first in the top of the third inning scoring two runs on back-to-back RBI singles by Jared Hoying and Aaron Dudley. The hit by Hoying scored Chris Dudics, while Dudley drove home Hoying. Dudics led off the inning with a double to right field.
Winthrop responded to tie the game at 2-2 in the bottom of the third. Cook drove in Donovan for the first run of the inning on his RBI double and Zak Blair followed with an RBI single to center field. Donovan reached on a walk in his at-bat prior to the double by Cook.
The Eagles took a 3-2 lead in the fifth inning on Sean Sullivan's RBI groundout to second base. Cook came home on the groundout after a leadoff walk to begin the inning, moved to second on Blair's sacrifice bunt and advanced to third on a wild pitch by Toledo starter Lincoln Rassi.
The Rockets answered back to take the lead at 4-3 in the top of the seventh inning that began with Mark Lapikas pinch-hit RBI double to left field that scored Joe Corfman, who started the inning with a single. Lapikas later came home on an RBI double by Dudics.
Winthrop tied the game again in the bottom of the seventh on Donovan's first career home run over the left field fence off Rassi.
Dudics posted a 2-for-4 performance for Toledo on the afternoon and was one of four players to have one RBI apiece.
“Hopefully, we can get another win tomorrow and on Sunday and that would make this a nice weekend,” added Hudak.
The Eagles will be back in action on Saturday, Mar. 13 as they host Canisius at 1 p.m.
