Lawrenceville, Ga. – The Saint Xavier University baseball team (4-6/0-0 CCAC) played No. 2 Georgia Gwinnett College and held a lead or was tied in three of the four games that saw the Grizzlies sweep the series. Both offenses were on display in game one as GGC outlasted the Cougars 15-9 Friday afternoon at the Grizzly Baseball Complex. Freshman infielder Troy Stukenberg (La Grange, Ill./Lyons Township) paced the SXU output by going 3-for-5, hitting his first collegiate home run and finishing a double shy of the cycle. The two programs played a doubleheader on Saturday afternoon that saw Georgia Gwinnett slip past Saint Xavier by a 4-3 score in the twin bill. Fifth-year senior catcher Evan Orzech (Shorewood, Ill./Crossroads Christian Academy) drove in two runs in the first game, while junior infielder Konner Hutchings (O'Fallon, Mo./St. Charles CC/Liberty) hit a two-run double in the second game. The Cougars and Grizzlies wrapped up the series on Sunday that resulted in a 12-0 win for the hosts.

Game One:

• Stukenberg had three RBI, two runs and a triple.
• Orzech went 1-for-2 with two walks and two RBI.
• Freshman infielder John Simecek (Twinsburg, Ohio/Walsh Jesuit) had a hit in four at-bats, collecting two RBI, two runs and a walk.
• Junior outfielder Kevin Dowling (Chicago, Ill./Murray State/Mount Carmel) was 3-for-4 with a double and a run scored.
• Senior Jimmy Fairley (Lake in the Hills, Ill./Rock Valley/Huntley) made his first start of the season, pitching 2.0 innings with four hits, four earned runs, a walk and three strikeouts.
• Senior pitcher Max Smyth (Tinley Park, Ill./Illinois Central/Andrew) worked 1.2 innings of relief allowing not hits, two earned runs, a walk and two strikeouts.
• Junior pitcher Noah Scott (Chesterton, Ind./Chesterton) suffered the loss (1-1) after he threw 0.2 innings and giving up two hits, four earned runs and two walks.
• Sophomore pitcher Heath Mann (Lewis Center, Ohio/Olentangy Orange) pitched 1.2 innings with five hits, four runs (three earned) and a walk.
• Junior pitcher Logan Antrim (Effingham, Ill./Lincoln Land/St. Anthony) tossed 2.0 innings with no hits, one run (unearned) a walk and striking out four batters.
• Dowling scored a run in the top of the 1^st on a pair of throwing errors that started on failed pickoff attempt.
• GGC tied the game in the bottom of the inning with a solo home run.
• Stukenberg sliced an RBI triple to the gap in right center and he would score on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Hutchings in the top of the 2^nd for a 3-1 lead.
• Georgia Gwinnett responded with an RBI base hit in the bottom of the 2^nd. They added two runs in the bottom of the 3^rd on an RBI single and a double steal of second and home. The Grizzlies pushed their lead to 6-3 in the bottom of the 4^th off a two-run double.
• Orzech pulled a two-run single through the right side of the infield, Simecek lined a two-run double down the left field line and Stukenberg slugged a two-run home run to help fuel a six-run rally for SXU in the top of the 5^th.
• GGC retook the lead in the bottom half of the inning, using a solo home run, an RBI groundout and an error that allowed a run to score and an RBI single. They added five more runs in the bottom of the 6^th on an RBI groundout, an error, an RBI single, another error and an RBI groundout.

Game Two:

• Junior outfielder Justin Massingale (Carbondale, Ill./St. Charles CC/Carbondale Community) stole three bases, scored two runs and was 2-for-3 at the plate.
• Orzech was 1-for-2 with two RBI and a walk.
• Junior pitcher Nico Saldias (Ajax, Ontario/Connors State/Pickering) had a strong performance throwing 5.2 innings with seven hits three runs (two earned) four walks and a season-high seven strikeouts.
• Antrim allowed a hit in the bottom of the 6^th and was lifted after an error for junior infielder/pitcher Sebastian Parchomenko (Algonquin, Ill./Southwest Mississippi/Dundee Crown), who pitched 1.0 inning giving up two hits, one earned run, two walks and a strikeout.
• Massingale raced home on a passed ball and Orzech was credited with the RBI as he drew a walk in the top of the 1^st.
• The Grizzlies tied the game in the bottom of the 3^rd on an RBI base hit and took the lead in the bottom of the 5^th off a sac fly.
• Junior outfielder Sean Moore (Chicago, Ill./Calumet St. Joseph/Thornwood) reached on an error and picked up an RBI as Massingale scored to tie the game at 2-2 in the top of the 6^th. Orzech gave Saint Xavier the lead in the next at-bat with an RBI single.
• GGC retied the game with a home run in the bottom of the 6^th and won the game on a two-out walk-off RBI single in the bottom of the 7^th.

Game Three:

• Hutchings finished 2-for-3 with two RBI and a double
• Senior pitcher Julian Vargas (Tinley Park, Ill./Tinley Park) toed the rubber (1-1) and went 4.2 innings, surrendering just four hits, three runs (two earned), a walk and striking out five.
• Sophomore pitcher Trent Markezich (Mount Olive, Ill./Mount Olive) finished the game, working 1.1 innings with one hit, one run (unearned), a walk and a strikeout.
• A stolen base and a throwing error gave Georgia Gwinnett a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the 1^st.
• Orzech drove in Moore with an RBI groundout to tie the game in the top of the 4^th.
• The Grizzlies hit a home run and scored a run on a wild pitch in the bottom of the 5^th to go up 3-1. They added what turned out to be the winning run in the bottom of the 6^th off a sacrifice fly.
• Hutchings laced a two-run double with one out in the top of the 7^th and was standing on third base, representing the tying run, when the final out was made.

Game Four:

• Massingale was 1-for-4 from the leadoff spot.
• Parchomenko went 1-for-3
• Junior infielder Mason Johnson (Palmdale, Calif./Antelope Valley/Quartz Hill) finished 1-for-2 and he drew a walk.
• Junior pitcher Logan McCleery (Patterson, Calif./Patterson) made his second start of the season (0-2) and threw 3.0 innings giving up five hits, three earned runs, a walk and two strikeouts.
• Junior pitcher Tommy Dougherty (Alsip, Ill./South Suburban/Shepard) came out of the bullpen and tossed 2.0 innings with five hits allowed, six runs (five earned), two walks and a strikeout.
• Freshman pitcher Andrew Young (Midland, Mich./Bullock Creek) pitched 1.0 inning with one hit, two runs (both unearned) and a pair of walks.
• Sophomore infielder/pitcher Gannon Burns (Edwardsville, Ill./Edwardsville) made his first appearance on the mound this season, throwing 1.0 inning with two hits, a walk and a strikeout.
• Sophomore pitcher Osvaldo Ballesteros Jr. (Berwyn, Ill./St. Laurence) threw an inning of relief, allowing two hits, an earned run and striking out one batter.
• GGC jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the 1^st on two-out rally with an RBI base hit and a two-run single.
• The score remained the same until a six-run rally by the Grizzlies in the bottom of the 5^th as the scored two runs on two wild pitches, a three-run home run and an error.
• Georgia Gwinnett added two runs in the bottom of the 6^th on an RBI groundout and an RBI double. They capped the scoring in the bottom of the 8^th off a sac fly.

Saint Xavier (4-6/0-0 CCAC) welcomes College of the Ozarks (Mo.) to campus for their home opening doubleheader on Friday, March 1. First pitch for game one on the refurbished and brand-new artificial turf surface at Richard R. Ferrell Field is 1:00 pm.