[Baseball] Baseball Falcons win 6-2 to complete series sweep over Builders
WICHITA, Kan. – The Friends University Falcons defeated the Southwestern College Moundbuilders 6-2 today (Apr. 18) at West Side Athletic Field to finish off a season sweep. The Falcons won the first meeting 13-8 in Wichita (Mar. 7) and then 13-2 in Winfield, Kan. (Mar. 28).
Combined with York's win today over Kansas Wesleyan, the Falcons remain one game behind the Panthers for the all-important sixth spot in the league. The top six teams advance to the KCAC Postseason Tournament in Great Bend, Kan. on May 3-6.
The Falcons broke on top early as Zeke Henson (SO/Raymore, Mo. ) doubled in courtesy runner Ryan Sylvester (SO/Tallahassee, Fla) and then scored on a single by Caleb Coats (SO/Katy, Texas) to make it 2-0 in the second inning.
Oliver Dunn (SO/Endeavour Hills, Australia) extended the lead to three runs with an RBI double that plated Niquan Benjamin (SO/US Virgin Islands) in the third before the Builders got on the board on an infield single by Tyler Seboldt in the top of the fourth.
But the Falcons got that run back in the fifth and then created more separation as Pablo Oden (SR/Hollywood, Fla.) doubled down the left field line to plate Buster Hardman (JR/American Fork, Utah) in the seventh and Sam Engberg (JR/Kearney, Neb. ) drove home Dunn with a sacrifice fly in the eighth.
Noah Prince hit a leadoff, solo homer for the Builders in the ninth, but Vincent Vigil (FR/Tampa, Fla. ) retired the next three Builders to close out the victory for the Falcons (21-20, 15-12 KCAC).
Spencer Davidson (SO/Delphos, Kan) was solid again on the mound for Friends, allowing just one unearned tally with two strikeouts and four walks across five innings.
Daniel Jaime (SO/Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.) then kept the Builders off the board for the next two innings, with Matt Postier (SO/Wichita, Kan.) and Vigil each pitching a scoreless frame to preserve the win.
Dunn finished with two hits and a pair of RBIs, while Coats, Hardman, Oden and Benjamin each had two hits as hitters 1-5 in the Falcon lineup batted .500 (10-20) in the game.
Seboldt and Josh Crabtree each had two hits for the Builders (8-34, 2-24 KCAC).
The Falcons will now play a three-game series this weekend at Sterling College, starting with a single-game Friday (Apr. 21) at noon in Sterling, Kan. A doubleheader Saturday (Apr. 22) at 1 pm will conclude the set.