ANGOLA, Ind. – The Trine University baseball team came up short in a Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) contest against Albion College on Friday afternoon by a score of 4-2. The Thunder had the tying run at the plate in the eighth inning, but could not scratch across the runs needed to come from behind to win.
Trine drops to 8-14 overall with the loss and are still searching for their first win in conference play at 0-5. The Britons of Albion are 9-13 and 1-4 in conference play.
A solo homerun in the top of the first put the Britons in front before the Thunder took an at-bat. In the second inning, the shortstop Luke Burford saved a potential run with a diving play up the middle. Joel Walton would lead off the bottom half of the frame with a single and was moved over to third, but left stranded. Another solo shot by Albion extended their lead to 2-0.
Burford added on to his efforts defensively with a double in the third, but he too was left on base. A balk in the fourth inning provided the team their first run. Brody Bond doubled to start the inning and a bunt single by Cole Temple made it first and third with no one out. That's where the misplay would occur as Bond crossed the plate to cut the deficit in half.
The Britons responded with two more runs to chase the starter Josh Hoogewerf (2-4) from the game after five complete innings. He would strike out three when the book closed on the right-hander. Southpaw Jack Villarreal entered from the Trine bullpen and kept the team within striking distance with 3.2 innings of scoreless relief work. He fanned a team-high five batters to keep the game at 4-1. Kade Keele notched the final out to prevent Albion from getting further ahead.
In the bottom of the ninth, Reid Courtwright entered the game as a pinch hitter and left the ballpark for his first homerun in his first collegiate at-bat. That made the score 4-2, but was not enough to get the victory. Each team had eight hits in the game and both teams were error-free.
Games two and three of the series will take place at Albion on Saturday, April 6 beginning at 1 p.m. for a doubleheader.