After a 3-16 April, Wichita State’s baseball team has regained some momentum with two straight series wins, including a home sweep over the weekend against the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.
The Shockers leapfrogged the 49ers in the American Athletic Conference standings with the sweep. Wichita State moved to 13-11 in AAC play and 27-26 overall, while Charlotte dropped to 11-13.
Friday
In the series opener, three Wichita State pitchers combined to two-hit the 49ers in a 2-1 win.
Both teams did their scoring in the sixth inning. Charlotte broke up a no-hitter from freshman Tommy LaPour with a solo home run in the top of the inning, but Wichita State responded with a two-run homer from freshman Kam Durnin in the bottom of the frame.
Junior Hunter Holmes came in for the seventh and pitched 2 ⅔ scoreless innings before being pulled with two outs in the ninth. Senior Nate Adler recorded the final out to get his sixth save of the season.
Seven Wichita State batters reached base during the game in a balanced offensive performance.
Saturday
The same day Charlotte’s softball team knocked Wichita State out of the AAC Championship, the Shockers avenged themselves on the baseball diamond, winning 11-2 to secure the series.
Senior Caden Favors pitched 7 ⅔ quality innings, earning his eighth win of the season. He gave up two runs and seven hits while striking out eight batters. Junior Jack Mount closed out the final 1 ⅓ innings.
Offensively, the game was highlighted by two three-run long balls from junior Seth Stroh, both of which drove in junior Mauricio Millan and freshman Camden Johnson.
Junior Derek Williams went 3-for-4 with a double and sacrifice fly. Senior Dayvin Johnson added a solo homer in his only hit of the game.
Sunday
A six-run rally in the seventh inning sealed the sweep for Wichita State, 7-2. Five relief pitchers came out of the home bullpen, combining to hurl 4 ⅓ scoreless innings. Sophomore Caleb Anderson secured the win with two innings on the mound, allowing only two baserunners.
Dayvin Johnson hit another solo shot in the third inning, but Charlotte led 2-1 going into the bottom of the seventh inning. With one swing of the bat, Durnin delivered Wichita State the lead, 4-2, on a three-run shot to left field.
The rally continued for the Shockers after the Durnin homer. Freshman Lane Haworth and junior Jordan Rogers both delivered two-out RBI hits to give Wichita State its five-run lead.
The middle of Wichita State’s lineup powered the offense with multi-hit games from Dayvin Johnson, Durnin and Millan.
The timely sweep moved the Shockers up to fourth in the AAC standings with one series to go before the Conference Championship. The team will travel to last-place Memphis for a three-game series beginning on Thursday. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m.
