ST. LOUIS – After dropping three of four against Lyon College one week ago, Missouri Baptist baseball rebounded on Friday. The Spartans recorded 16 runs over two games in a doubleheader sweep of Hannibal-LaGrange 3-1 and 13-2.
Missouri Baptist (25-8) took to the field in game one behind ace Ethan Gibbons and earned a clutch 3-1 win. Gibbons threw a complete game and surrendered just one earned run on five hits. In the outing, the senior struck out eight and walked none.
MBU trailed 1-0 after one inning, but posted runs in the second, third and fifth innings to secure the game one win. Ricky Pagan and Dan Harper both recorded two hits while catcher Garret Vail had the biggest hit of the game. In the third, Vail broke the 1-1 tie with a solo homerun. This proved to be the game winner.
Hannibal starter Stephen Schnieders was hung with the loss. He allowed all three earned runs on eight hits and five walks.
In game two, the consistent Spartan bats returned and put on a clinic. MBU had just one extra base hit in the game and 13 total hits in the 13-run explosion.
The Spartans knocked Trojan starter Denys Delgado out of the game after just one inning. In the first, MBU dropped seven runs on the board on five hits, but Delgado recorded all three of his outs on strikeouts. 12 Missouri Baptist batters stepped to the plate in the inning.
Pier Olivier-Dostaler broke out in the second game. The Spartan second baseman went 3-4 with three RBI and a double. Mykol Sostarich also provided two RBI and went 2-3 in the game.
On the mound, MBU again sent just one pitcher to the hill. Julien Soucy struck out 10 Trojans while giving up two earned runs on five hits.
MBU will try to make it three in a row on Saturday in the final day of the four-game series. Nathan Utt and Mike Avila are scheduled to get the starts for the Spartans.
GAME NOTES
Joe Stropp now has the longest active hits streak on the team. The Spartan catcher has hit safely in his last eight consecutive games. Missouri Baptist sent just two pitchers to the mound on Friday, both of whom allowed five hits in seven innings of work. Ryan Gunhouse recorded two stolen bases on Friday, improving on his conference-leading 0.58 stolen bases per game. Going into Friday's games, Missouri Baptist ranked fifth in the NAIA in homeruns per game (.774).
