Stellar pitching and hitting lead Knights to victories over Williamson Trade
By Andrew Hunter
Knightly News Sports Reporter
andrew.hunter@mymail.centralpenn.edu
The Central Penn Knights baseball team swept a doubleheader against Williamson Trade on Friday afternoon on City Island in Harrisburg, winning the first game 7-0 and the second 14-0 in five innings.
Game 1
The Knights started freshman Wyatt Koser on the mound to begin Game 1, and Koser did not disappoint. He pitched a stellar seven innings with 12 strikeouts, not allowing a run and giving up only five hits.
In the bottom of the first, Colby Criswell started the offensive output for the Knights, driving in Owen Zell for an RBI single. Then, thanks to two errors by Williamson Trade in the first inning, the Knights were able to push two more runs across to take an early 3-0 lead.
From there, the next four innings were a pitcher’s duel, as both teams put up zeroes until the bottom of the fifth inning. Defensively, the Knights held it down with solid performances around the diamond, including several excellent plays from third baseman Harvey McClain. The Knights did not commit any errors in the game, leading to some quick innings for Koser.
The scoring started in the fifth inning with a McClain RBI single, followed by another single by Dalton Koller, plating two more runs. For some insurance runs, Adam Hoover walked with the bases loaded, bringing the score to 7-0.
Offensively for the Knights, Adam Hoover reached base four times in the game, going 1-for-1 and walking three times, scoring a run. Koller went 1-for-3 with 2 RBI and a steal, while Zell went 1-for-2 with two steals, a walk and a run.
Samuel Coppa of Williamson Trade had a solid outing in the batter’s box in Game 1, going 3-for-4 with two steals. Joe Kelly went 1-for-2 with a double and a walk.
The story of the game was Koser. After some rough outings so far this season, Koser was dominant in this start. In this shutout, Koser pitched seven strong innings, striking out 12 and only allowing five hits and three walks. Koser was named the Knightly News Player of the Game.
Game 2
The Knights continued their fantastic pitching and solid defense in Game 2, as Central Penn came out on top 14-0 in five innings.
Jordan Spadafore took the mound and carried over Koser’s pitching momentum from Game 1 with another great performance. In his complete game, Spadafore threw 54 pitches, 30 of them being strikes which contributed to five strikeouts, only allowing four hits and one walk. The Knights defense had another great defensive outing without committing any errors.
In the batter’s box, the Knights offense was firing on all cylinders, getting a total of 18 runners on base behind 10 hits and eight walks. The most exciting play of the game came from the bat of Nathan Wise, hitting a drive to center. After a miscue from Williamson Trade’s outfielders, Wise cleared the bases and scored in an electric play at the plate, leading to a big early lead from the Knights.
A similar situation happened later in the game, as Jefrandy Montero did the exact same thing as Wise, hustling around the basepaths and scoring thanks to an error by Williamson Trade.
Offensively for the Knights, Zach Boyer led the way, going 2-for-2 with three runs and two RBIs. Montero was 1-for-2 with three runs and Brady Park was 2-for-3 with an RBI. For Williamson Trade, Evan Lewis was 2-for-2 with a stolen base.
Spadafore was the Knightly News Player of the Game, going five strong innings in the shutout.
The Knights improved their record to 6-10 on the season. They look to continue to improve their record as they host Penn State-York at In The Net Sports Complex in Palmyra on Tuesday.
The Knightly News Media Club livestreamed the games. They can be found at the links below. Paul Miller and Thomas Davis were on the call.
