Dominant Pitching Vaults UChicago Past No. 2 Johns Hopkins
The University of Chicago baseball team took down the #2 team in the country with a 6-2 win over Johns Hopkins on Wednesday afternoon.
It was a dominant start on the mound for both teams as the teams combined for just one baserunner in the first two innings. Braden Jirovec reached on a walk and stole second in the bottom of the first inning, but the Johns Hopkins pitcher struck out two of the next three batters to end the threat.
The Bluejays struck first in the third inning with a hit by pitch and an RBI triple to take the first lead of he game at 1-0. However, UChicago answered right back in the bottom of the inning with a leadoff double by Jack Sharp and a two-out double by Michael Gladden to even the score.
The Maroons gifted the Bluejays the go-ahead run in the fourth inning with a walk, wild pitch, groundout to move the runner, and wild pitch for a 2-1 advantage. In the bottom of the fifth, UChicago answered back as Johns Hopkins loaded the bases for the Maroons thanks to a pair of walks and a hit by pitch. Max Wiesner then ripped a two-out single into right field to score Jirovec and level the score at two through five.
The offense kept the momentum from the fifth inning rolling into the fifth with a leadoff single for Harrison Belden and an RBI double by Ryan Bhojwani to put the Maroons in front for the first time. Then, following a walk for fielders choice and ground out, the Maroons would score two more runs on a pair of Johns Hopkins wild pitches to bring home Sharp and Luke Weston to five UChicago the 5-2 lead.
Hopkins would threaten in the seventh with a two-out double down the left field line, but Russell Kwinter induced a groundout to keep the Bluejays off the board. Then, they had another chance in the either with a pair of singles, but the UChicago sophomore came up big again with a three-pitch strikeout to keep the Maroons in front.
In the bottom of the eighth, the Maroons would use another Johns Hopkins miscue to add an insurance run as with two outs, Jirovec reached on an error, Erik Rindner was hit by a pitch, and Gladden singled to stretch the advantage. Kwinter then slammed the soor with two strikeouts in the final inning to seal the 6-2 win.
Matthew Richert had a great day on the rubber for the Maroons with six strikeouts in four innings of work. The sophomore allowed just one hit, one walk, and two runs in the start. In relief, Russell Kwinter earned the victory with 5.0 shutout innings as the sophomore struck out five batters while allowing only three baserunners, all three on hits.
At the dish, Michael Gladden led the way with two hits and two RBIs. Ryan Bhojwani also added a pair of base knocks with an RBI and run scored, and Jack Sharp scored two runs for the Maroons.
With the win, the Maroons improve to 7-7 on their season and extend their winning streak to four consecutive games.