By: Landry Long | Co-Sports Editor
The Taylor baseball team brought their brooms to Winterholter Field on Monday as the dominant performances of four Trojans hurlers led to a two-game sweep against Goshen.
The opening game was a low-scoring affair on both sides, as Taylor took home the victory by a score of 3-1. Junior Logan Rodgers dealt a shutout all the way into the fifth inning, while sophomore Matt Patton took only 34 pitches to register the final nine outs. Patton earned his third save of the season without allowing a hit or a walk.
The Trojans' offense was much quieter in the opener compared to the second game, but sophomore Tanner Watson collected two hits, while seniors Lincoln Reed and Kevin Fahy and freshman Nathan Targgart all chipped in with singles. Fahy and sophomore Jared Adkins both brought runners to the plate, while a throwing error resulted in Taylor's final run.
The Trojans took game two by a score of 12-0 thanks to the performance of junior Luke Hunter on the mound. Hunter struck out nine Maple Leaf batters in six shutout innings, while sophomore Jamie Bristol finished the deal by throwing a scoreless seventh inning.
The Trojans' offense ignited a hitting explosion in the bottom half of the fourth inning. Senior Brian Moore started the fire with a bunt single and a stolen base, while Reed brought him home off a double for the first run of the game. Moore came to the batter's box later in the inning, doubling off the left-center field fence to plate Adkins for the seventh and final run of the inning.
The searing swings continued for the Trojans as they continued to pile on runs behind hits from Moore, Reed, Targgart, Adkins and junior Nick Saldutti. Junior Nick Hollowell also sent a ball flying over the fence in the fifth inning.
While the offense awoke in the second game, senior Jake West acknowledges the importance of the Trojans' pitching squad during not only these two games, but throughout the year.
"Pitching is crucial in every series," West said. "I feel that if our pitchers can continue to perform and limit the runs of other teams, our offense will be able to back them up, and if we are playing our best baseball all the way around, we will be a tough team to beat."
As the Trojans are feeling good coming off this two game sweep of the Maple Leafs, head coach Kyle Gould is focused on preparation, as the road will only get tougher.
"We have this week of practice to get ready for a big four-game series with Mount Vernon this weekend at home," Gould said. "Mount Vernon is always a good team and was picked to win the league in the pre-season. We will need to play at or near our best to win this series."
The Trojans (24-12, 7-3 CL) will next be in action this weekend as they host Mount Vernon Nazarene (17-12, 3-3 CL) for a total of four games on Friday and Saturday, starting Friday at 5 p.m.
Photograph by Fayth Glock
