Alton, Ill. – The Saint Xavier University baseball team (7-5/0-0 CCAC) scored 25 runs on 22 hits to complete a four-game sweep of University of Health Sciences & Pharmacy in St. Louis (Mo.) Sunday afternoon in Alton, Ill. to extend their winning streak to six games. Junior outfielder Ben Meier (Beechwood, Ky./Lincoln Trail/Beechwood) collected three RBI and sophomore outfielder Parker Violett (Maple Park, Ill./Kaneland) clubbed two doubles to lead the Cougars to a 14-3 victory in game one. Junior infielder John Simecek (Twinsburg, Ohio/Walsh Jesuit) tallied three hits with three RBI, while junior catcher Victor Zaragoza (Orland Park, Ill./Sandburg) belted a pair of doubles as SXU took the second game by a score of 11-2.

Game One:

• Meier went 2-for-3 with two runs scored and a triple
• Violett was 2-for-3 as well with two RBI and two runs.
• Junior infielder Max Waszkiewicz (Willowbrook, Ill./Hinsdale South) finished 1-for-2 with two RBI.
• Redshirt freshman infielder Jackson Michko (Dyer, Ind./Lake Central) slugged his first collegiate home run.
• Senior outfielder Ryan O'Farrell (Oak Forest, Ill./Oak Forest) had no official at-bats, drawing three walks, scoring twice and stealing a base.
• Senior pitcher Gannon Burns (Edwardsville, Ill./Edwardsville) picked up the win (2-0) after pitching 4.0 innings, scattering three hits with an unearned run and four strikeouts.
• Senior pitcher Nick Krueger (Clifton, Ill./Danville Area/Clifton Central) worked an inning out of the bullpen with two strikeouts.
• Senior pitcher Osvaldo Ballesteros Jr. (Berwyn, Ill./St. Laurence) threw an inning of relief, allowing three hits, one earned run and collecting a strikeout.
• Redshirt freshman pitcher Ethan Godlewski (Tinley Park, Ill./Lincoln-Way East) also tossed an inning out of the pen, giving up one hit, one earned run, two walks and posting a strikeout.
• Violett opened the scoring in the top of the 2^nd with an RBI double and he would score on a wild pitch later in the inning.
• UHSP plated a run off an error in the bottom half of the inning.
• Saint Xavier scored six runs in the top of the 3^rd to push their lead to 8-1. A run scored via an error, Violett smacked another RBI double, Meier lined an RBI single, Waszkiewicz drew a walk with the bases loaded, senior infielder Shea Zbrozek (Bloomington, Ill./Danville Area/Normal Community) hit an RBI infield single and another Eutectics miscue scored a run on the play.
• Meier sliced a two-run triple in the top of the 4^th, scoring on a wild pitch later in the frame, and Waszkiewicz laced an RBI base hit.
• Michko sent a ball over the right field wall, a two-run shot, in a pinch-hit appearance in the top of the 6^th.
• Health Sciences & Pharmacy picked up a run on a double play in the bottom of the 6^th and a hit-by-pitch plated a run in the bottom of the 7^th.

Game Two:

• Simecek was 3-for-3 overall, a home run shy of the cycle, with three runs and two steals.
• Zaragoza went 3-for-3 as well, recording two RBI.
• Violett hit a double in three trips to the plate with two RBI and a stolen base.
• O'Farrell hit his first home run of the season, going 1-for-3 with two RBI and a walk.
• Senior designated hitter Aaron Orzech (Shorewood, Ill./Crossroads Christian Academy) finished 1-for-2 with three runs scored and was hit-by-pitch three times.
• Senior pitcher Thomas Plizga (Hoffman Estates, Ill./Olivet Nazarene/Fremd) came away with his first win of the season (1-1) after logging 5.0 innings, surrendering just one hit, one earned run, one walk, and collecting a career-best eight strikeouts.
• Sophomore pitcher Tyler Deluca (Minooka, Ill./Minooka Community) pitched an inning of relief with one hit, one earned run and a strikeout.
• Junior pitcher Richard Gomez (Chicago, Ill./Parkland/Concordia-Chicago/St. Laurence) worked the bottom of the 7^th, allowing one hit, a walk, and striking out two batters.
• A wild pitch scored Simecek in the top of the 2^nd.
• Violett smashed a two-run double in the top of the 4^th.
• In the top of the 5^th, Simecek legged out an RBI triple.
• UHSP homered, a two-run shot, in the bottom of the 6^th.
• The Cougars capped the scoring in the top of the 7^th when they plated seven runs. Simecek sliced a two-run double to the gap in right center, Zaragoza clubbed a two-run double, O'Farrell pulled a two-run home run to left and Meier added an RBI double.

Saint Xavier (7-5/0-0 CCAC) is scheduled for a four-game series with Missouri Valley College, starting with a doubleheader on Saturday, February 21. Game one is slated for a 12:00 pm first pitch.