BASEBALL

The 2nd-seeded HU baseball team outlasted 5th-seeded Mount Vernon 7-4 in first round action of the Crossroads League Tournament Thursday afternoon at Forest Glen. The Cougars landed a spot in the six-team double elimination tourney after disposing of 8th-seeded Bethel 5-3 in yesterday’s play-in game.

The game was up for grabs until the bottom of the seventh when HU took full advantage of what the MNVU pitching staff offered which included two hit batters and a wild pitch. With bases loaded, the wild pitch allowed Kallen Kelsheimer, pinch running for Sebastian Kuhns, to race home after which Satchell Wilson found a hole in center field to drive in two runs.

Prior to the hosts’ three-run inning, the lead had toggled back and forth four times and saw three ties. The Cougars scattered runs in four different frames having scored twice with two outs. Matt Wolff singled in Huntington’s first run in the home half of the first. Langston Ginder led off the third for HU with a solo blast for his 15th homer of the season.

Ian McCutcheon’s RBI-ground out plated Huntington’s next run in the fourth and then Jarret Gray put the exclamation point on the contest in the eighth when he flared a single into left to bring home Ginder who smoked a double to kick things off for the Foresters.

Frame’s crew finished with 13 hits to Mount Vernon’s ten. HU’s first six batter accounted for all but two of their team’s base pokes with Wilson, Ginder, Wolff, Gray and Kuhns each posting a pair.

Noah Arbuckle earned the win on the mound having tossed the first seven frames. The right-handed junior struck out four while surrendering ten hits, four runs and a walk. Grant Simmons threw two frames of hitless, scoreless relief to notch the save.

With today’s W, the Foresters (36-14) tied the program record for most wins in a season with 36.
HU is back in action tomorrow at 6:00 p.m. to face the winner of the IWU/Saint Francis game slated for later today.