The Wayne State University baseball team opened its four-game series against Findlay with a 9-2 win on Friday at Xavier’s Hayden Field in Cincinnati. The Warriors, who now hold an 8-1 record this season, will continue the series with a doubleheader scheduled for Saturday.
Wayne State scored its first three runs via home runs. Owen Tuccinardi hit his fourth home run of the season in the first inning, sending a solo shot down the left field line. In the second inning, Brayden Crowe hit his first career home run, a two-run blast to left that also brought in Rhett Roeser.
After Findlay put up its first run in the bottom of the second, Wayne State added more offense in the third. Tuccinardi tripled to bring in Bennett Hitzelberger, and Drew Hill followed with a sacrifice fly to center field that allowed Tuccinardi to score.
The Warriors extended their lead by scoring four additional runs over the sixth and seventh innings. Tony Hatzigeorgiou scored on a wild pitch in the sixth. In the seventh, Hill singled to drive in Hitzelberger, and Hatzigeorgiou hit a two-run home run that also scored Gabe Zeldes.
Findlay managed one more run in the ninth inning but could not close the gap as Wayne State secured a seven-run victory.
On the pitching side, Will Lowery improved his record to 3-0 after allowing just one earned run on two hits over five innings, striking out five batters on 74 pitches. Nick Baker was effective out of the bullpen, retiring five of six batters faced with two strikeouts and lowering his season ERA to 1.04 across 8.2 innings pitched.
TJ McAllister retired all five batters he faced without issuing any walks and struck out one batter on 18 pitches. Carson Tehan closed out the game by pitching the ninth inning and giving up one earned run on two hits.
Wayne State Warriors Men’s Baseball competes at the NCAA Division II level as part of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC), according to their official website. The team plays its home games in Detroit, Michigan, and captured the GLIAC Tournament title in 2010 (source). The university’s athletic teams are known as “the Warriors,” with “W the Warrior” serving as their official mascot (source).
