DANVILLE, Va. – Scoring three runs in the second, one in the third, two in the fourth, and another in the fifth, the Guilford College baseball team (9-9, 1-4 ODAC) put runs on the board early and often on Wednesday afternoon, resulting in their first Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) victory of the spring, 12-6 over Averett University (6-11, 1-4 ODAC) at Owen-Fulton Field.

Marcello Ricigliano's (Kernersville, N.C.) strong outing lost some sheen in the ninth, but he was still terrific in the winning effort, improving to 4-3. Completing a Guilford season-high 8.1 innings of work on the mound, the senior permitted five runs, only four earned, on seven hits and a walk while striking out five Cougars.

It would end up as a short day at the office for Averett starter, Justin Godsey as the Quakers knocked him around over 2.1 innings of work, pilling up four runs, all earned, on five hits. The righty fanned three but never ended up off the hook, falling to 1-2.

Matching their team season-high for hits, with 16, and doubles, with five, in the game, GC featured a number of standout performers in this one. Namely, Trae Pitts (Land O' Lakes, Fla.) had a career-day, picking up his first collegiate extra-base hit, a double, as a part of a 4-5 showing with a steal, two runs scored, and three driven in. Trevor Myers (Eastampton, N.J.) reached in four of his five trips, going 2-3 with a double and a duo of walks, crossing the plate three times and driving in one. Chris Shoemaker (Winston-Salem, N.C.) went 3-5 scoring a couple runs, Skyler Dark (Pleasant Garden, N.C.) also scored twice in a 2-5 outing with a double, while Gavin Fleming (Gibsonville, N.C.) drove in a tandem of runs in a 1-3 performance.

Connor Kubis came off the bench and provided half the Cougars offense with a three-run double, but it was the only extra-base hit the hosts mustered in the game. Nathan Michalowicz drove in two runs and scored once in a 1-4 outing and Luke Keister matched his line, albeit with just one RBI. Austin Ford and Tyler Lowe had multi-hit days with the former scoring once and the latter crossing the plate twice for AU.

A quiet first gave way to a strong second for the Quakers, who put two in scoring position within the first three pitches of the inning on a Shoemaker single and Myers double. Fleming opened the game's scoring, tapping a productive out to short and granting GC a lead they never relinquished, though they were far from done. Connor Griffin (Fort Mill, S.C.) plated a second run with a single to center then went first-to-third on a knock by Pitts through the right side of the infield. The aggressive baserunning paid off as Guilford executed a first-and-third double steal to stake themselves to a 3-0 lead.

The guests tacked on another in the third when Dark hit a one-out double, advancing and then scoring on base hits by Shoemaker and Fleming later in the inning. They then put up another two in the fourth on a leadoff single by Pitts, Hayden Sekanik's (Tampa, Fla.) first collegiate extra-base hit, a double, into the leftfield corner that scored Pitts from first and allowed Sekanik to take third on the play at the plate, then he scored on a Rylan Smith (Archdale, N.C.) sacrifice fly. AU got one back in the bottom of the frame as Lowe singled, Ryan Toney reached on an error and Michalowicz plated the unearned run on a groundout, but GC countered when Myers walked, took two bags on wild pitches then scored when Pitts legged out a bunt hit to open a 7-1 lead.

Meanwhile, Ricigliano was cruising through the Averett lineup, finding a groove after allowing that solo tally in the fourth and facing the minimum over the ensuing four frames until Guilford blew the game open in the top of the ninth. Three-straight singles from Dark, Shoemaker, and Myers resulted in a run before Jackson Shaner (Pittsboro, N.C.), who entered as a defensive replacement in the seventh, got plunked to load the bases. Following the first out, Pitts cashed in with a two-run double prompting a pitching change then Ethan George (Burlington, N.C.) followed suit with a two-run two-bagger of his own, making it a five-run inning and a 12-1 score.

The lengthy top of the ninth, that saw AU make three pitching changes, including two mid-inning, definitely effected Ricigliano when he came out and tried to finish what he started. The senior got the first out, but two singles and a walk loaded the bases before Michalowicz singled in the first earned run permitted and ending Ricigliano's complete game bid. Braden Bradford (Jamestown, N.C.) entered, and allowed three more inherited runs plus one of his own on a Keister knock and a bases-clearing double by Kubis, but all the five runs did was make the score look better than it was for Averett, as the tallies finished a 12-6.

GC returns to Edgar H. McBane Field next for their top test of the season thus far as the No. 3 nationally ranked University of Lynchburg visits Greensboro on Saturday, March 21^st for a pair. First pitch of game one is set for noon.

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