BASEBALL

The HU baseball kicked off its 2021 season with a sweep of Kentucky Christian over the weekend in Tuscaloosa, Ala. The three-game series saw Huntington claim a 9-2 win on Saturday before logging two more Ws on Sunday, 12-2, 6-2.

Heading into the spring, the HU coaching staff had made it clear that pitching would be the backbone of the Foresters’ success this season and this weekend was evidence of that.

Mason Shinabery got the nod on Saturday. In the first 4.2 innings of the night, the senior hurler struck out 11 of the 16 batters he faced while giving up three hits and a run for the win. Brent Turner closed out the game by fanning five of the final nine batters while allowing two hits and a run.

Offensively, five of Huntington’s nine hits were for extra bases with Ian McCutcheon leading the pack with three base pokes and an RBI. Langston Ginder logged the day’s only three-bagger, collecting two RBI along the way. Satchell Wilson finished with two hits and an RBI.

Alex McCutcheon picked up his first W of the season by spending five frames on the bump in Sunday’s opener. The senior southpaw sat down ten of the 16 batters he faced on strikes. He allowed just two hits which included a two-run blast in the second which served as Kentucky Christian’s only offense after which Joey Butz offered two innings of scoreless, hitless relief to wrap up the win.

After scattering two runs through the first three frames, Huntington erupted for ten runs in the fourth to blow the game wide open. Eight Foresters registered at least one hit with Wilson going 3-for-4 at the plate and picking up three RBI to pace Frame’s crew. Daniel Lichty scored twice and knocked in three runs on two hits. Jarrett Gray added two runs, two RBI and two runs.

Camden Dice collected the win on the mound in the nightcap. In five innings of work, he surrendered two hits, two runs and two walks. Gabe Freeman tossed the last two frames, giving up two hits while striking out two.

HU had another big inning at the plate, this time the fifth where they plated five runs,  to take a substantial lead that they were able to ride out for the victory. Wilson again came up big for his team by posting two hits and two RBI. Owen Young also finished with a pair of base pokes as the duo accounted for half of HU’s hits in the game.

Next up for the Foresters (3-0) is a road trip to #11 IU Southeast this weekend for a pair of doubleheaders against the Grenadiers.