Box Score ALLIANCE, Ohio – Another stellar pitching performance, this time from freshman Collin Skufca (Wooster) and senior Beau Taylor (Alliance/West Branch), led the Mount Union baseball team to a 4-2 win over the Thiel Tomcats Wednesday at 23rd Street Field.
With the win the Purple Raiders advance to 11-4 on the year while Thiel drops to 5-11.
In his first career start, Skufca (1-0) gets the win on the mound for the Raiders as he went six innings giving up two runs, one earned, on just two hits and four strikeouts.
Senior Christian Stanziano (Oberlin/Elyria Catholic) and junior Nate Owen (Cranberry Twp.,Pa./Seneca Valley) led the Raider offense with two hits apiece. Stanziano extended his hit streak to 16 games dating back to last season with a double in the top of the first.
The Tomcats jumped on the Raiders early as they were able to get their only two runs of the game in the top of the first off of Skufca. Skufca walked in a run in the first and a run came around on an error to make the score 2-0.
A Charlie Lewis (Strongsville) single got the Raiders on the board as he scored Jimmy Scott (Holland/Toledo St. John's) in the bottom of the third inning.
Mount Union took the lead for good as they got two runs in the fifth to make the score 3-2. Owen led off the inning with a double and Stanziano drove him home with a single up the middle. Later in the inning, Niklas Kuriger (Atco, N.J./Winslow Township) hit a single down the right field line that scored Billy Goodall (Canfield/South Range).
Skufca kept the Tomcats off the base paths and the Raiders got an insurance run in the sixth off a sacrifice fly from Goodall that scored Scott Cooney (North Olmsted).
Taylor came on in the seventh and got his second save of the year as he pitched the last three innings giving up one hit with four strikeouts.
Next up for the Raiders is a matchup with Ohio Athletic Conference foe and No. 18 ranked Baldwin Wallace, Friday, March 30 with the first pitch coming at 1:00 p.m. in Berea.
