Williamsburg, KY – The fifth ranked Patriots sweep the day against Marian University (Ind.) in the home opener. Cumberlands took the first game 17-2, followed by an 8-3 victory in the second game.
GAME ONE:
Kailen Hamson got the start and the win as he pitched a shoutout going 5.0 innings. He only allowed three hits with no walks and eight strikeouts. Yannis Rembert came in for the last two innings, allowing just two runs on three hits with one strikeout.
At the plate, the bats were hot for UC, scoring 17 runs on 13 hits. Cumberlands had three players tally three hits in the game. Trent Prokes had a day, hitting 3-for-4 with four RBIs and a walk. Pedro Vasquez went 3-for-4 with a homerun, three RBIs, and three runs scored. Max Harper also hit 3-for-4, tallying an RBI with three runs scored.
The Patriots scored three runs in the bottom of the first to jump out to an early lead. Christian Thompson reached on an error to lead things off. Muniz was then hit by a pitch to put two on with nobody out. Alec Gonzalez delivered in his first at-bat of the day, doubling to deep right field to bring in the first run of the game. Next at-bat, Harper singled to left field for an RBI single. One batter later, Ben Snapp hit a sacrifice fly to right field to drive in the third run of the frame, giving UC a 3-0 advantage.
After a scoreless second inning, Cumberlands tacked on another run in the third. Pedro Vasquez hit a solo homerun to left center to extend the lead to 4-0, his first of the season.
The Patriots scored six runs in the bottom of the fourth inning to take a commanding lead. After a groundout to begin the frame, Thompson walked to bring up Muniz. The senior stepped up to the plate a launched a 2-run homerun to left field, his fourth of the season. An error and a single from Harper quickly put two Patriots on again. Following a passed ball, Vasquez drove in a run on a sacrifice fly, increasing the lead to 7-0. Back-to-back hit by pitches led to Prokes hitting a 2-RBI single through the right side. Thompson walked with the bases loaded to bring in a run to make the score 10-0.
In the bottom of the fifth, UC would score two runs on two hits. Snapp notched an RBI on a fielder's choice, and Prokes scored Vasquez to make it 12-0 on an RBI-single to right field.
Marian University scored their first runs of the game in the top of the sixth on a 2-run homerun to reduce the deficit, 12-2.
Alec Gonzalez kept the bats rolling in the bottom of the sixth with a 2-RBI double into the left center gap. Following a Haper single, Vasquez collected another RBI with a single to score Gonzalez. A couple of batters later, Prokes walked with the bases loaded to bring in the third run of the inning to make it a 16-2 ballgame. Jaylen Jones entered the game to pinch-hit for the Patriots and recorded an RBI on a fielder's choice to score the last run of the game for UC and give them a 17-2 win.
Game Two:
In game two, Wesley Culley picked up his first win of the season. Culley relieved Knicko Billings and pitched 4.2 innings, only allowing three hits and two walks with a season-high 10 strikeouts. Thompson led the way in game two going 3-for-4 with a triple, walk, and three RBIs. Both Clay Shelton and Caden Petrey collected homeruns in the game.
After a scoreless first frame, Marian took an early 1-0 lead in game two off an RBI-single through the right side.
UC responded in the bottom of the fourth inning with five runs on three hits. Vasquez led things off with a single through the left side. Back-to-back walks from Prokes and Shelton loaded the bases with one out. With the bases loaded, Petrey got hit by a pitch to score a run to tie the game at 1-1. Next at-bat, Thompson tripled over the right fielder's head to bring in three runs and give the Pats their first lead of the game, 4-1. Gonzalez singled through the right side to bring in a fifth run for the Patriots.
The Knights had a response of their own in their next at-bat. Following back-to-back hits to lead off the inning, Marian hit a 2-RBI single center field to close the deficit to 5-3.
In the bottom of the fifth, Clay Shelton hit a two-out bomb to left field to get a run back for Cumberlands to extend the lead back up to three, 6-3.
The long ball would reappear in the bottom of the seventh inning for UC. Cumberlands would get a homerun courtesy of Caden Petrey to give the Pats a 7-3 lead, his second of the season. Vasquez drove in the final run of the game on a fielder's choice to make it an 8-3 game.
Cumberlands moves to 5-1 on the year and will head to (RV) Milligan (Tn.) next Tuesday for a doubleheader beginning at 2 p.m.
For the latest and most up-to-date information on University of the Cumberlands Athletics. Please visit www.cumberlandspatriots.com. Follow us on Twitter- @UC_Patriots and @UCPatsGameday, Instagram- @UCPatriots, TikTok- @ucpatriots, Youtube- Cumberlands Patriots, and Facebook by searching University of the Cumberlands Athletics.
