MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. – The McDaniel College baseball team swept a doubleheader with Centenary (NJ) on Tuesday to finish a perfect 5-0 at the Ripken Experience Myrtle Beach.
The Green Terror (12-5) run their winning streak to six with the sweep, finishing undefeated on their spring break trip for the first time since the team began traveling to Myrtle Beach in 2022.
McDaniel rallied in the opener with a four-run seventh inning, walking off on a game-winning sacrifice fly to win 9-8.
Game 1: McDaniel 9, Centenary (NJ) 8
An RBI-single from senior
Ben Davis put the first run on the board for McDaniel in the first, pushing the lead to 2-0 on an RBI-groundout from junior
Shea McKenna in the third that scored graduate student
Shane Daly.
The Cyclones (2-11) tied the game in the fourth on an RBI-double, later taking a 3-2 lead in the fifth on another RBI-double. The Green Terror answered with a three-run bottom of the fifth to regain the lead. Davis delivered with a two-run double to score Daly and first-year
Jack Morin, and sophomore
Thomas Mezzullo drove in Davis with a sacrifice fly.
Centenary then scored five runs in the sixth to go ahead 8-5. Later in the seventh, Mezzullo tied the game at 8-8 with a bases-clearing, three-run triple to score McKenna, Daly and Morin. Sophomore
Anthony Cerone then won the game with a walk-off sacrifice fly to score Mezzullo, giving the Green Terror a 9-8 win in the opener.
Mezzullo drove in four runs to lead the team, finishing 1-for-3 with a run scored. Davis went 3-for-4 with three RBIs while Daly reached base on all four of his plate appearances, recording two hits, two walks and four runs scored. Morin went 2-for-3 with two runs scored.
Sophomore
Austin Sealing earned the win in relief, walking three without allowing no hits in 24 pitches. Junior
Jake Young got the start, throwing 3.2 innings and totaling one strikeout, two walks, two earned runs and seven hits.
Game 2: McDaniel 12, Centenary (NJ) 8
The Green Terror struck first with a two-run first inning, scoring on an RBI-double from McKenna and an RBI-ground out from Mezzullo. The Cyclones (2-11) answered in the bottom half of the first with a two-run homer to knot the score 2-2.
An RBI-double in the third gave Centenary the lead 3-2, but the Green Terror would respond with a six-run fifth inning. Morin scored with the bases loaded after Daly was hit by a pitch, tying the game again 3-3. A two-run single from Davis gave McDaniel the lead, and Daly later scored on a fielding error. Two more runs came across to score as McDaniel would take an 8-3 lead. The Cyclones scored twice in the bottom half to make the score 8-5 after five.
Centenary tied the game in the sixth inning with a two-run double and a sacrifice fly. The game remained tied until the eighth, when a four-run frame gave McDaniel a lead they would never relinquish. Junior
DJ Stolba broke the tie with an RBI-double to score Morin, and junior
Patrick Kelly scored Stolba on another RBI-double moments later. Davis then drove in two more runs for the game's 12-8 final margin.
Davis went 2-for-5 with four RBIs while Morin concluded a strong spring break with a three-hit day. Daly, McKenna and Stola all recorded two base hits in the win while Kelly went 1-for-3 with an RBI and two runs scored.
First-year
Holt Flowers picked up the win in relief, throwing 31 pitches and totaling one strikeout and two hits. Fellow first-year
Alex Von Behren got the start, pitching 4.1 innings and collecting one strikeout, one walk, five earned runs and eight hits.
The Green Terror return to Maryland on Thursday to battle No. 4 Salisbury in a road midweek contest. First pitch is set for 2 pm.
