Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 Williamsburg, KY – Patriots baseball completed the sweep of St. Ambrose, picking up both wins on the final day of the series. In a hitting extravaganza, a pair of grand slams highlighted the seven homers slugged on the day. Cumberlands outscored the visiting Fighting Bees 27-9.
 
Lead-off hitter Pedro Nazario impressed the home crowd with his third grand slam in as many days. He went 4-5 on day two of the series, hitting homers in back-to-back at bats in game one and a third to close out the night.
 
Nathan Geissler and Walter Hernandez tally another win each from the hill. Four pitchers combined for 26 strikeouts over the course of 14 innings; Hernandez noted a new team-high 11 K's in his outing.
 
Game Two: Cumberlands def. St. Ambrose, 18-3
It was a hitting party at Doyle Buhl Stadium; 10 hits by the Patriots led to 18 runs on the scoreboard. The home team plated at least one run in all but one inning.
 
Patriots catcher Rhett Gipe, coming into the day with only one hit recorded, had a stellar showing of 3-3 on the day. He chalked up a pair of RBI in the opening inning.
 
Free rides to first and a single started Cumberlands' nine-run inning. A trio of walks scored the opening runs for the Patriots with the bases loaded. Gipe stepped in and singled through the hole at shortstop to plate a pair.
 
Leading 5-0 and bases loaded again on a walk, Nazario cranked his third grand slam of the week. The shot went over the left field fence on the 1-2 count, scoring four more runs in the home team's favor. In six games this week, the senior has recorded 20 RBI.
 
The rally continued in the second inning; Jose Rojas led off with a double deep to left-center. Candido Encarnacion sacrificed his at bat to plate his teammate. A single and walk loaded the bases for the Patriots, allowing Kevin Rolon to follow in Nazario's fashion with a grand slam of his own. K. Rolon's lone at bat recorded in the day was his second homer of the season. The Patriots took the 14-0 lead into the third.
 
Starting on the hill, Walter Hernandez delivered high heat to open the game. He struck out the side in both the first and third innings, noting eight strikeouts before giving up the first hit of the day in the fourth.
 
Bryan Leef notched his fifth double of the season to lead off the third. He went 2-4 in game two, scoring both times getting on base. A Brian Garcia triple, continuing to lead the team with six this season, scored Leef. B. Garcia scored as well in the inning on an infield groundout for the 16-0 margin.
 
In the fourth inning, the Patriots responded to a trio of St. Ambrose runs with one lone run of their own. Leef collected his only RBI of the game on a fielder's choice as the Fighting Bees attempted to turn a double play; K. Rolon headed into the dugout with the second of three runs scored in the game.
 
Sebastian Zayas remained perfect on the season as a pinch hitter. A sacrifice fly in his sixth-inning at bat plated pinch runner Carter Grooms, his 16th time crossing the plate this season.
 
Hernandez finished the day with a team-high and career-high 11 strikeouts through his six innings of work. He was relieved of command by Chase Whitaker, who dropped a pair on strikes in the final inning.
 
St. Ambrose did score three runs in the top of the fourth, converting on their first hits of the day. The fighting bees were held to hits in the fourth inning only. The hitting offense prevailed as the pitching staff kept runs off the board; Patriots won 18-3 to cap the series.
 
Game One: Cumberlands def. St. Ambrose, 9-6
Nazario and Encarnacion proved to be the biggest hitters in the day's opener. In their 3-3 showings, they combined for five RBI and three runs scored. The long ball proved the most effective in the game as the Patriots sent five over the wall.
 
Nathan Geissler had a fluke of an inning to start the day, giving up a run in the first but bounced back to in his nine-strikeout day, ringing up three in the fifth. After the first inning, he registered four consecutive three-batter innings, not allowing another hit until the sixth.
 
The Nazario-Encarnacion duo homered solo shots in the second inning to retake the lead. Encarnacion led off the inning with liner over the center field wall. Nazario followed two batters later on the full count, his fifth four-bag trot of the year.
 
In his following at bat, Nazario boomed another ball, this time over the right field fence. Ray Villanueva safely bunted his way on, bringing Leef to the plate. After a slow showing on day one of the series, the senior slugged a two-run homer far over the high left-field fence to extend the Patriots lead to 5-1.
 
Geissler rounded out his day in the sixth, collecting the win after Dawson Young came in to hold the lead 5-2 lead. St. Ambrose scored another in the frame to narrow the margin, but another heavy offensive showing kept the Fighting Bees at bay.
 
Third hit of the day for Encarnacion was a lead-off double deep down the right field line. With two in scoring position, Nazario's third hit of the day was also a double, this time to deep right-center. Villanueva stepped in for his second season homer, both tallied this week, to plate a pair more for the 9-3 edge.
 
Young was able to fend off a Fighting Bees comeback in the final frame, getting his first save of the season. Three runs were scored on two outs; the sophomore righty pulled out his third strikeout of the inning to close the door on St. Ambrose, 9-6
 
Up Next: Tennessee Wesleyan
Cumberlands is set to travel to Athens, TN for a single, nine-inning game against the Tennessee Wesleyan Bulldogs. First pitch of the game is slated for 2 PM and is expected to be streamed by the Tennessee Wesleyan crew.
 
Both teams currently remain undefeated on the season; the Patriots are 15-0 while the Bulldogs are 10-0. The result of the game will have a big impact on the upcoming team rankings. Currently, Cumberlands is ranked third in the Perfect Game rankings, highest recorded by the Patriots since they were #3 in an NAIA Poll back in 2004. The reigning national champions Tennessee Wesleyan sits atop of the same Perfect Game poll.
 
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