Case Western Reserve University graduate student left fielder Franco Alonso hit a pair of home runs, the first two of his collegiate career, and first-year right-handed pitcher Tyler Stillson struck out 10 batters in his first career start, as the Spartans defeated Oswego State 14-6 at Lexington County Stadium in Lexington, South Carolina on Thursday afternoon.
The win was the second straight for the Spartans who improved to 8-4 overall for the season, while the Lakers fell to 3-6 with the loss.
Alonso went three-for-five in the game with the two home runs, driving in four runs during the contest and scoring a pair. Senior second baseman Zack Carinci added a three-for-four showing with a run and an RBI, while graduate student catcher Jack Anderson went two-for-four with a double, two runs, and three RBIs.
The Spartans registered a season-high 16 hits as a team in the game.
Meanwhile, Stillson was brilliant in his first career start, allowing just two earned runs and four runs total over five and two-thirds innings. He surrendered just three hits and three walks to earn the first win of his career, improving to 1-0 with a 3.24 ERA. It also marked the second-straight game that a Spartan has struck out 10 batters after first-year Quinn Saunders struck out 14 batters against Trinity on Tuesday.
CWRU rallied with two outs in the bottom of the first inning to take an early lead in the game, as graduate student third baseman James Powers was hit by a pitch, junior right fielder Nick Harms reached on an error, and Camphausen followed with a three-run home run, his third in the team's last five games, to put CWRU in front 3-0.
The Lakers scored a run in the top of the second to pull back within two runs, but the Spartans got the run back in the bottom of the inning when Alonso led the frame off with a solo home run over the wall in right center to put CWRU ahead 4-1. The Spartans added two more runs in the fifth on an RBI double by Anderson and a run-scoring single from Harms. Oswego answered back with three runs in the top of the sixth to cut the Spartans' lead to 6-4, but sophomore Austin McGowan entered the game with the potential game-tying run on deck and got the final out of the inning, and went on to pitch a scoreless seventh.
CWRU added a run in the bottom of the sixth inning on a two-out RBI double by first-year shortstop Nate Arterburn to go back up by three, 7-4. The Spartans then broke the game open in the bottom of the seventh, sending 12 batters to the plate and scoring seven runs in the frame, including three on Alonso's second opposite-field home run of the game and two on a single by Anderson, taking a 14-4 lead into the eighth inning.
Senior Patrick O'Connor pitched a scoreless eighth before Oswego added a pair of runs in the top of the ninth, but it was too little too late for the Lakers, as the Spartans held on for the win.
Oswego State starter Sean Dertinger suffered the loss in the game, dropping to 1-1 for the season.
The Spartans will wrap up play in Lexington with a doubleheader tomorrow. Game times for the doubleheader have been moved up an hour, with CWRU now playing Ithaca College at 10:00 a.m. followed by a 1:30 p.m. first pitch against Oswego State.
