BELOIT, Wis. — The Beloit College baseball team tossed a shutout in the opener and then got an unearned run late to pull out the nightcap in a Midwest Conference sweep of Lawrence University on Saturday at Strong Stadium.
Beloit won the opener 5-0 and took the nightcap 4-3.
In the first game, Ryan Kaveney went the distance in tossing a four-hit shutout. He struck out 13 and did not walk a batter. The Vikings (2-10, 0-2 MWC) had only one runner reach as far as third base.
Davis Ogilvie allowed four hits in 4.2 innings and took the loss. He struck out seven and walked five. Seven Beloit players had one hit apiece and Ethan Blumenthal drove in two runs for the Bucs (10-6, 2-0).
In the second game, Beloit broke a 3-3 tie with an unearned run in the bottom of the seventh. Mike Gulve reached on an error and got to third with the help of a single and another error. He then scored on Alex Lawrence’s fielder’s choice ground ball to put the Bucs up 4-3.
Lawrence had a chance to tie it in the eighth after Luke Zablocki delivered a two-out double. Pinch-runner Brandon Klar moved to third after an error on pitcher Jim Leyhane, but Gabe Warshaw struck out to end the threat.
The Vikings had a threat against reliever Andrew Kane in the ninth after Max Markoff’s one-out single, but Brandon Vamarasi grounded into a game-ending double play.
Zablocki went 3-for-3 with three doubles and drove in a pair of runs in a three-run first inning for the Vikings. Alex Lawrence went 2-for-4 and drove in three runs for Beloit.
Leyhane went eight innings, allowed nine hits, struck out seven and walked one to get the win. Drew Doares went seven innings, allowed seven hits, struck out four and walked three to take the loss.
The teams finish the four-game series on Sunday at Whiting Field.