The Case Western Reserve University split a doubleheader against Denison University, winning the first game 6-3 and falling 7-4 in the second contest at Nobby's Ballpark in Cleveland, Ohio on Saturday afternoon.

The Spartans now stand at 13-7 overall this season, while Denison moved to 13-5. The loss in the second game ended a five-game winning streak for the Spartans.

Game 1 – CWRU 6, Denison 3
Senior designated hitter Jake Ryan returned to the Spartans' lineup, bashing his first home run of the season, and sophomore first baseman Nick Talarico added a key two-RBI triple, as the Spartans topped Denison 6-3 in the opening game of the doubleheader.

Six of the Spartans' nine hits in the game went for extra bases. Ryan finished the game two-for-four with two RBIs and two runs scored, while Talarico added a two-for-four performance with the triple and a double. Senior shortstop Jacob Lott hit a pair of doubles, going two-for-two with a walk, a run scored and an RBI.

Denison scored a run in the top of the third to take a 1-0 lead. The Spartans had a chance to even the score in the bottom of the inning after first-year third baseman Zack Carinci extended his hitting streak to 13-straight games with a double to lead off the frame, but he was later thrown out trying to score on a wild pitch. The Big Red added a run in the fourth to go ahead 2-0, but CWRU had an answer in the bottom of the frame. Ryan, appearing in his first game since the Spartans' opening weekend of the season, singled to lead off the frame, extending his hitting streak (dating back to 2019) to 20 games. Senior catcher Tre Armstrong singled with one out to put runners on the corners, and Talarico followed with a game-tying triple in the next at bat, knotting the score at 2-2. Talarico scored a run of his own on a go-ahead sacrifice fly by senior outfielder Benjamin Stawicki.

Denison tied the game at 3-3 with a run in the top of the sixth, but CWRU regained the lead in the seventh, when Carinci walked to start the inning, moved to second on a wild pitch, and scored on a double by Lott. With two outs in the inning, Ryan connected on a two-run opposite field homerun to right, extending the Spartans' lead to 6-3.

CWRU junior started Nick Denove left the game with a no-decision after six innings, allowing three runs on six hits and two walks, while striking out three. Senior Tony Smodilla entered the game in relief and allowed just one hit over three scoreless innings of work, earning the win to improve to 3-1 and lowering his season ERA to 1.04.

Denison starter Taylor Perrett suffered his first loss of the season in the game, dropping to 3-1 on the campaign.

Game 2 – Denison 7, CWRU 4
The Spartans jumped out to an early lead in the second game, but were ultimately turned away by a pair of three-run home runs by Denison's Brian McAuliffe in a 7-4 game two loss.

CWRU struck first in the game, scoring four runs in the bottom of the second to grab a 4-0 lead. Carinci and Lott started the rally with back-to-back one-out singles, and Stawicki reached on a fielder's choice, scoring Carinci from third. Stawicki would score a batter later, on a single by sophomore second baseman Trey Haley and an error by the Denison centerfielder, extending the lead to 2-0. Sophomore catcher Jack Anderson followed with a base hit to plate Haley, and a two-out single by junior outfielder Cole Jarrett scored Anderson to make it 4-0. However, Denison responded with a four-run inning of its own in the top of the third, including three on a home run by McAuliffe, evening the score at 4-4.

The score remained tied until the top of the sixth, when McAuliffe connected on his second three run home run of the game, giving the Big Red a 7-4 advantage.

Meanwhile, CWRU would struggle to get its offense going again against Denison starter Charlie Fleming. All five of the Spartans hit and four runs came in the second inning, as Fleming held CWRU hitless and scattered just three walks for the remainder of his eight-inning outing. He earned the win in the game to improve to 4-0 on the campaign, and Jack Arnstein pitched a perfect ninth to close out the win and earn his second save of the year for the Big Red.

First-year Tyler Horvath was saddled with the loss, despite a strong outing in relief, falling to 1-1 on the year. His only blemish was McAuliffe's second home run of the day, as he allowed just three runs on four hits with four strikeouts and two walks over his six-innings of work.

The Spartans and the Big Red will conclude their eight-game season series tomorrow with a doubleheader scheduled in Granville, Ohio. First pitch is slated for 1:00 p.m.