Box Score Lexington, Ky. – The Transylvania baseball team opened up the season on Saturday with a 7-0 win over the Bluffton University Beavers at Legends Ballpark.
Playing a modified conference-only schedule in the 2021 season, Bluffton and Transylvania each ushered in their respective seasons in Lexington with an afternoon doubleheader. Transylvania earned a stellar shutout victory in the Saturday opener.
The teams waged a competitive second game that reached a 9-9 deadlock after nine innings before the game was halted to due to darkness. The teams are scheduled to make up the remainder of the second game at a time and date to be determined later in the season.
Jake Schmidt toed the rubber for the Pioneers for the first time in 2021 at noon and earned the game one win, striking out eight Beaver batters and allowing no runs in six innings of work.
Transylvania opened up the scoring on Saturday in the second inning as Michael Blair delivered a one-out single. Wade Lopiccolo followed with a single into left field and Joshua Cain delivered his first career hit as a Pioneer with an RBI single to left that scored Blair for a 1-0 Pioneer lead.
The Pioneers heated up in the following inning with three more runs for a 4-0 advantage. Parker Tuszynski led off the onslaught with a double and Henry Molloy delivered an infield single to put men on the corners. Devyn Wilson-Cowan scored Tuszynski on an RBI double and Riley Willbur and Hudson Chastain each followed with RBI doubles to punctuate the explosive inning.
Two more runs came in the seventh for Transy as Tuszynski came across home plate on an error by Bluffton's pitcher and Chastain drove in Molloy on an RBI single.
Trent Youngblood made his collegiate debut in Saturday's opener, relieving Schmidt for the final three innings to strike out three while allowing no walks and two hits.
Chastain led the way in game one with a 3 for 5 game to go with two runs batted in and one stolen base. Lopiccolo supplied two hits and a walk while Wilson-Cowan finished the game 2 for 5 with a double, an RBI, and a stolen base.
Transylvania returns to Legends Ballpark tomorrow for another doubleheader as the Pioneers welcome the Earlham College Quakers to Lexington. First pitch of the doubleheader is scheduled for 12 noon.
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