By Mia Gallagher · Sports Editor
After a long week of baseball in the central Florida heat, the Wolverines closed their time at the RussMatt Invitational with a 4-4 split.
Grove City rallied throughout the competition, securing key wins over John Jay, St. Olaf, John Carroll and Marian (Wis.) and learning a lot from narrow losses to Concordia (Ill.) and Illinois College.
In the final three days of play, the Wolverines went 2-for-3, narrowly edging John Carroll 8-7 on Thursday and decisively defeating Marian 11-4 on Saturday. These wins were separated by a 14-10 setback against Roger Williams on Friday.
Looking first to the John Carroll game, the Wolverines secured an early 7-0 lead over the Blue Streaks, with junior David Chandler, senior Colin Marinpetro and junior Caleb Backos all notching two-run RBIs in the third inning.
Freshman pitching duo Graham Romer and Jack Guiffre split time on the mound, pitching 4 2/3 and 4 1/3 innings, respectively. Romer conceded five runs to start the game, while Guiffre yielded an additional two runs and four hits.
Against Marian, the Wolverines recorded 13 hits and 11 RBIs. Backos led the offensive effort with a triple, a single and three RBIs, while Chandler and freshman Johnny Reyes followed with a double and single apiece. Marinpetro went 3-for-5 at the plate, earning PAC Hitter of the Week for his consistent batting performance throughout the invitational.
From the mound, junior pitcher Bryce Trischler pitched a season-high eight innings, allowing four runs while striking out three batters. Freshman Caz Ostrowski relieved Trischler for the ninth inning and struck out three batters.
After a week of rest, the Wolverines will travel to Greencastle, Ind. tomorrow to face DePauw in a doubleheader. The first game will start at 12 p.m. with the nightcap beginning at 3 p.m.
