Myrtle Beach, SC --- The WPI baseball team closed play at the Myrtle Beach Spring Break Tournament with a doubleheader sweep of Otterbein on Friday at Ebbets Field. The Engineers claimed a 4-2 victory in the opener before edging the Cardinals 3-2 in game two to improve to 8-0 on the season. Otterbein falls to 1-11.
 
Game One
WPI used timely hitting and strong pitching to take the opener, 4-2.
 
Zachary Roethlein (Pomfret Center, CT) led the Engineers with two hits and a stolen base, while Joe DiMichele (East Longmeadow, MA) collected two hits and scored a run. Jack Zawacki (Pittsford, NY) doubled and scored, and Liam Keblin (Newton, MA) drove in a run with a sacrifice fly.
 
Dominic Monico (Litchfield, NH) earned the win, allowing one run on four hits over five innings while striking out five. Joseph Conti (Lincoln, RI) recorded the save with two innings of relief.
 
Otterbein was paced offensively by Calvin Mabry (Chesapeake, VA), who recorded two hits and drove in a run. Braylon Boggs (Grove City, OH) added an RBI single in the seventh inning. Maverick Rabe (Florence, KY) took the loss for the Cardinals after allowing three runs (two earned) on five hits over 4.1 innings with four strikeouts. Riley Abrams (Cincinnati, OH) worked the final 2.2 innings in relief.
 
WPI opened the scoring in the second inning when Zawacki crossed the plate on a wild pitch after reaching earlier in the frame.
 
The Engineers added two more runs in the fifth. Keblin lifted a sacrifice fly to right field to score DiMichele, and another run crossed on a wild pitch later in the inning to extend the lead to 3-0.
 
Otterbein answered in the fifth with an RBI single by Mabry to cut the deficit to 3-1. WPI added an insurance run in the seventh when Keblin scored after Jacob Wiberg (Exeter, NH) reached on a throwing error.
 
The Cardinals pushed across a run in the bottom of the seventh on Boggs' RBI single, but Conti recorded the final outs to secure the victory.
 
Game Two
WPI completed the sweep with a 3-2 victory in the second game behind strong pitching and late execution.
 
Aaron Johnson (Auburn, NY) led the Engineers offensively with two hits and scored the eventual winning run, while Drew Herlin (Wrentham, MA) delivered the go-ahead RBI in the eighth inning.
 
Wiberg started and tossed five scoreless innings, allowing three hits while striking out four. Brian Riley (Portland, ME) earned the win in relief with a scoreless inning that included two strikeouts.
 
Otterbein was led by Jack Barber (Gahanna, OH), who recorded two hits, while Cam Fisher (Worthington, OH) notched a two-run single that tied the game in the seventh. Darren Ramsey (Lancaster, OH) started on the mound and allowed two runs (one earned) on three hits over six innings with three strikeouts before Russ Wight (Canal Winchester, OH) was tagged with the loss in relief.
 
WPI opened the scoring in the fifth inning when Spencer Merrick (Abington, MA) reached base and moved into scoring position after a sacrifice bunt by Ben Seidler (Yardley, PA). Merrick advanced to third on a wild pitch before coming home on Miles Pratt's (Hampton, NH) RBI groundout to give the Engineers a 1-0 lead. Seidler had helped set the tone defensively earlier, making a great play at second base to end an Otterbein threat in the previous inning.
 
The Engineers extended the lead to 2-0 in the sixth when Sascha Stoll (Boise, ID) came around to score after James DiGiovanni (Kennebunk, ME) reached on a throwing error.
 
Otterbein evened the game in the seventh inning after loading the bases with two outs. Fisher lined a single to center field that scored Mabry and Boggs to tie the contest at 2-2.
 
After a scoreless bottom of the seventh for WPI, the Cardinals threatened again in the top of the eighth by loading the bases with two outs. However, Riley recorded the final out on a strikeout.
 
In the bottom of the eighth, Johnson got things going when the Cardinals' infielder lost a ball in the lights, putting him on second with no outs. After a passed ball moved him to third, Herlin hit a hard ground ball to short with the infield in. The ball was knocked down but the shortstop had no play, allowing Johnson to score the winning run.
 
WPI returns home for its home opener on Tuesday (March 17) at 3:30 p.m. against Roger Williams at the New England Baseball Complex in Northborough, Massachusetts. Otterbein closes its spring break trip Saturday morning against Immaculata at the Ripken Experience in Myrtle Beach.
 
Game 1 Box Score
 
Game 2 Box Score