briefs
Pirates top Astros
The Astros wrapped up their spring training schedule on Tuesday with a 5-1 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Melky Cabrera’s first home run this spring drove in Moran and put the Pirates up 2-0 in the fourth inning. George Springer went deep for the second time this spring when he connected off Eduardo Vera on a solo shot in the bottom of the inning.
In softball
Marlaina Bozek and Emma Morgan led a strong opening performance as Trinity opened its season and Class 5A Section 3 play with a 12-2 win over Chartiers Valley in five innings.
Bozek had three hits, all singles, with one RBI and also scored.
Morgan sparked a seven-run fourth inning from Trinity (1-0, 1-0), driving home a pair of runs with a single. She finished 2-for-4 with four RBI.
Jenna Bonnysteele suffered the loss for Chartiers Valley (0-1, 0-1).
In baseball
Mike Allen went 2-for-3 with a pair of singles but Washington lost to Freeport, 12-1, in five innings.
Wash High (0-2) scored its lone run on an error in the fourth inning. Steve Patterson had a double for the Prexies.
Zach Allen paced an early offensive onslaught from Freeport (1-0), which scored all 12 runs in the first four innings. Allen went 2-for-4 with 3 RBI for the Yellow Jackets, including a double.
Bradyn Clark earned the win for Freeport with five strikeouts over five innings.
- A 6-run first inning helped Laurel Highlands down McGuffey, 10-3, in a non-section game.
Mike Brestinsky had two stolen bases and a run scored. McGuffey (1-1) scored two runs on an error.
Wild Things
sign pitcher
The Wild Things signed left-handed pitcher Nick Wegmann for the 2019 season.
Wegmann joined Washington in June following a team tryout. After four appearances and three innings with the Wild Things, the lefty was drafted by the Seattle Mariners in the 34th round of the MLB Amateur Draft. In his rookie season with Seattle, he struck out 25 batters.
The New York native played his college ball at Binghamton University. His time with the Bearcats was primarily as a starting pitcher, making 32 starts over four seasons. As a senior, he threw more than 70 innings, striking out 56, with two complete games and two shutouts.
“We look to explore Nick’s versatility in spring. We only saw him in a limited capacity with a substantial amount of innings already on his arm”, said General Manager Tony Buccilli. “He has an extensive background starting, so it will be intriguing to see how he compares to the competition to join the rotation we created for camp.”
Players honored
After getting eight hits and 13 stolen bases last week, California University senior Eric Fairman was selected the National Collegiate Baseball Writer Association Atlantic Region Player of the Week on Tuesday afternoon.
Fairman turned in a .533 average (8-for-15) and a 1.059 OPS, as the Vulcans posted a 6-0 record last week, highlighted by a four-game series sweep of IUP to open Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference West action.
- Nick Riggle of California was named PSAC West Pitcher of the week.
Riggle earned the complete-game victory in Game 1 on Saturday, as the Vulcans earned a 3-1 win over IUP at Wild Things Park. He scattered just one hit and one earned run while issuing zero walks and tallying six strikeouts in 7.0 innings against the Crimson Hawks. Riggle retired the side in order four times and forced nine ground-outs and six fly-outs.
Cal baseball team
now ranked 25th
The California University baseball team debuted at No. 25 in the latest Collegiate Baseball Top 30 poll on Monday night.
The Vulcans are 16-3 overall record this season following an undefeated 6-0 mark last week. On Tuesday, Cal registered a doubleheader sweep over Wheeling Jesuit behind a combined 22 runs on 25 hits.
Over the weekend, the Vulcans completed a four-game series sweep against IUP to open divisional play after a pair of comeback victories on Sunday.
Cal is one of four teams from the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference and the Atlantic Region featured in the rankings. Mercyhurst (11-3) is tied for No. 13 after winning three of four games to open league play, while West Chester (10-4) fell one spot to No. 22 behind a 1-1 record in divisional action.
Millersville (16-7) dropped three positions to No. 28 after posting a series win in its initial league series of the year.
College softball
A strong offensive performance combined with solid pitching in the circle helped the Washington & Jefferson College softball team to a non-conference sweep of La Roche University at Brooks Park on Tuesday afternoon.
The Presidents rolled to a 9-1 win in five innings during the opener before securing an 8-3 victory in Game 2 to complete the sweep.
Offensively, the Presidents combined to record 17 runs on 24 hits against the Redhawks. Meanwhile, the pitching staff limited the visitors to just four runs combined.
In Game 1, after giving up an early run to spot La Roche a 1-0 lead, W&J took control with five runs in the bottom of the second inning. Freshman outfielder Sarah Labbe and senior pitcher Taylor Andres recorded back-to-back two-run singles to give W&J a 4-1 edge. Later in the inning, junior first baseman Laura Ryder singled home junior centerfielder Dana Parker to push the lead to 5-1.
The Presidents tacked on four runs on four hits in the fourth inning to extend the lead to 9-1.
In Game 2, the visitors plated a run in the top of the first inning to take an early lead. However, sophomore second baseman Brooke McCleester helped W&J tie the score in the bottom of the first with a RBI bunt single.
The Redhawks would register a run in the top of the second to regain the lead at 2-1 but W&J’s offense continued to battled back. After a sacrifice fly by Creyer tied the score, senior shortstop Rachel Johnson launched an opposite field home run to give the Presidents a 4-2 lead.
Ryder tacked on an RBI double to make the score 5-2 after three innings. In the bottom of the fourth, W&J tallied three more runs to make the lead 8-2.
College baseball
Washington & Jefferson swept a doubleheader from Waynesburg, winning 8-4 in the first game and 8-2 in the second.
In Game 1, the Presidents scored six runs in the fifth inning. Jackson Russell hit his first home run of the season and went 2-for-3 with two RBI and a run. Spencer Howell went 2-for-3 with two runs. Josh Crummer and Michael Zito each hit a double.
Justin Buberl homered and Tyler Godwin tripled for Waynesburg.
In Game 2, Dante Dalesandro, Mullen Socha, Spencer Howell and Josh Crummer each had a double for W&J (10-7). Pete Kalinski had two hits and two RBI.
Brandon Durbin doubled and scored for Waynesburg (9-10).