MONTREAT, N.C.— The Montreat baseball team hosted the West Virginia University Institute of Technology Golden Bears for another non-conference doubleheader on Saturday, closing out its opening home slate of the 2024 season in the process. Playing at Newell Field in Montreat, N.C.,
Daniel Willie broke the Montreat career strikeout mark during an 11-0 shutout victory prior to a 10-2 Cavalier defeat in game two. With the twin bill split, the Cavs moved to 3-5 on the young season.
West Virginia Tech (2-2) found little success against Willie during the opening contest. The graduate student from Ooltewah, Tenn. carved up the opposition with relative ease as only one Golden Bear advanced to third base safely across his seven innings of work. Montreat turned a trio of double plays behind Willie, who passed Jared Drayton for the Montreat baseball career strikeout record with his fifth punchout of the ballgame. Willie totaled seven strikeouts in the win, giving him 324 for his Cavalier career.
"It was awesome to see Willie break the school record for strikeouts as he's worked so hard for it," said head coach
Jason Beck. "Battling back over these last few seasons to continue to get better every start has been his mission. He's a special player, and I'm glad he's on our side."
As good as Willie was on the mound, Montreat's offense was arguably even better. The hosts clubbed a home run in four of their six frames at the dish, and
Jaider Morelos launched two moonshots in the victory.
Tommy Ramos plated the initial run of game one with a double down the left field line, and
Caleb Abshier drove him home when he deposited a pitch over the center field fence. Montreat pushed one more run across to lead 4-0 after one inning of play.
Morelos and
Richard Matos Delacruz crushed homers in the second and third frames, respectively, and after
Dean Davis' RBI double pushed the Cavaliers' lead to 8-0 in the fifth, Morelos concluded the scoring in the same frame with his 3-run blast to center.
Zeb Marquis (2-2), Abshier (2-3) and Morelos (2-2) combined for six of the home side's 10 hits. Eight different Cavs scored a run in the 11-0 triumph.
Game two proved to be a different story for Montreat, who managed just one hit through five innings and two total hits prior to their final frame at the plate.
The Golden Bears set the tone with a 3-spot on the scoreboard before the Cavs came to bat. WVU Tech ultimately scored the initial 10 runs of game two before
Andres Balart delivered the first homer of his Montreat career, a 2-run shot, in the bottom of the seventh. As a result, West Virginia Tech salvaged a split thanks to its 10-2 win in the latter half of Saturday's doubleheader.
Two of the hosts' four hits in game two came via pinch-hitters in
Camden Abshier and Balart.
Hunter Rast hurled a scoreless inning of relief work in which he struck out the side.
The Montreat baseball team takes its second trip to the state of Florida next weekend for the start of a 4-game series at Warner University. First pitch of Friday's doubleheader is slated for 3 p.m. in Lake Wales, Fla.
