QUINCY, Ill. - DU baseball continued their bounce back season on Monday with a doubleheader sweep at Quincy by scores of 18-7 and 9-7. The Panthers improved to 14-5 overall and did not win their 14th game last season until April 20. The team grinded out a season-high 18 runs in game one and then used several mistakes by the Hawks to prevail 9-7 in game two.
Davenport opened up a close game in game one with nine runs in the top of the eighth inning. DU led 9-7 heading into the inning and scored those nine runs on five hits and even left the bases loaded. A total of 15 batters came to the plate in the inning for DU.
Zach Hopman pinch hit for
Garrett Swan to lead off the inning and singled. He would later single again and drive in two runs.
Justin Johnson drove in two runs with a single.
Xander Reisbig and
Logan Todd each walked with the bases loaded to force in a run.
Coltrane Rubner had a RBI single glance off the pitcher.
Travis Liford as a pinch hitter for
Cody Hultink had a RBI groundout for the 17th and final run of the inning.
The game finished after eight innings due to the mercy rule since it was a non-conference game. Johnson hit a solo missile to deep left in the seventh inning and finished with three RBI to lead the team along with three runs scored. Rubner went 3-for-5 with two RBI and a run scored. Hultink scored four times and walked three times.
Michael Tchavdarov went 2-for-3 with three walks, three runs scored and hit a two-run homer in the second inning.
Chase Kemp smacked a solo homer in the second inning and finished 2-for-4 with two runs scored.
Adam Berghorst (2-1) got the win going 5.2 innings and striking out four with no walks.
Conor Gausselin threw 2.1 relief innings and allowed one hit and no walks with five strikeouts.
Quincy jumped out to a 4-0 lead through two innings against
Austin VanderMarkt in game two. The Panthers rallied with a run in the top of the third and three more in the top of the fifth to tie the game. Quincy regained a 5-4 lead in the bottom of the sixth and Davenport responded with three runs on just one hit in the top of the eighth inning for a 7-5 lead. Rubner had a fielder's choice RBI and two unearned runs scored on an error. Reisbig also reached on an error later in the inning as Rubner scored from third with one out.
Quincy got one run off
Mason Hill in the bottom of the eighth to make it 7-6 as he allowed a lead-off homer to David Broughton. The insurance runs came in the top of the ninth as the Panthers had a RBI single by Tchavdarov and then he later scored on a wild pitch with two outs.
Ian Dixon did allow a run in the ninth but got three outs to earn his second save of the season. DU scored nine runs with only two RBI in game two. Hopman went 3-for-5 with a double, triple, stolen base, and three runs scored. Johnson collected a pair of hits in five at-bats.
Joey Barboza also doubled and scored in four at-bats with a stolen base.
Davenport is riding high into GLIAC play as they will travel to Purdue Northwest on Friday, Mar. 21 for a 4:00 PM first pitch in Hammond, Indiana.
