Quakers explode for 12 runs in victory

Quakers go 1-0 with 12-11 win

[Box Score]

(WC Press Release) FT. MYERS, Fla., (March 8, 2004) -- The Wilmington College Quaker baseball team started the season off with a bang in the form of a 12-11 victory over Worchester Polytechnic Institute in the Gene Cusic Clasic in Ft. Myers, Florida.

Senior Burt Cox (Fairborn/Fairborn) picked up the victory, pitching one and two-thirds of an inning while Jimmy Wolverton (London/Madison Plains) was 4-of-5 from the plate in the win.

The Quakers scored in every inning, while allowing just three scoring innings for the opponents.

The Quakers led off the game with a run in the first before WPI put up two runs in the bottom of the first, giving the home team on the scoreboard their only lead of the game at 2-1. The Quakers then scored two runs in the second and three more in the third to open a 6-2 lead.

After two more runs in the fourth inning WPI erupted for six runs on just four hits in the bottom of the fourth inning, tying the game at eight. The Quakers responded with a run in the fifth and two more in the sixth before WPI once again rallied and tied the game 11 with a three-run sixth inning.

The Quakers took the lead for good in the game when Aaron Lawson (Hebron/Lakewood) singled in Tom Harter (Westlake/Westlake) with two outs in the inning. Cox then pitched a perfect seventh inning for the victory.

Wolverton led the way with four hits in five at bats while Brent Bird (Columbus/Hilliard Darby) and Lawson each went 3-for-4 in the game. Ben Buehner (Germantown/Valley View) scored three times in the game while Lawson and Bird each knocked in three runs in the contest.

With the win the Quakers start the season 1-0. Their next game will be on Monday, March 8 when the team plays a double header against Eureka starting at 4:00.