Elon Baseball Splits Pair With Delaware

ELON, N.C. – With potential weather forcing a doubleheader on Saturday, the Elon University baseball team earned a split of the day’s two games against the Delaware Blue Hens at Latham Park. The Phoenix took game one by a 15-2 margin before suffering a 3-2 setback in game two.

Game 1 Box | Game 1 Play-by-Play
Game 2 Box | Game 2 Play-by-Play

On the day, Elon (19-21, 9-6 CAA) saw Ty Adcock go a combined 5-for-9 with two doubles, a home run, two runs scored and four RBI. Ryne Ogren added four hits, scored twice and drove in three.

Delaware (23-15, 9-6 CAA) saw Nick Patten go 3-for-8 with a run and one RBI. He was the only Blue Hen to have more than one hit in either game on Saturday.

Picking up his fifth win of the year in game one was Kyle Brnovich (5-2). Brnovich struck out eight and allowed just two hits in 5.0 innings.

Delaware starter Kevin Milley (3-2) was charged with seven runs (six earned) on seven hits in 5.0 innings to take the loss in game one. He struck out six.

Jordan Barrett (2-3) took the loss for the Phoenix in game two after allowing three runs on six hits in a career-best 7.1 innings. He struck out five.

The win went to James Meeker (5-1) after he gave up two runs on two hits in 3.0 innings out of the bullpen. Burk FitzPatrick recorded the final out for his third save on the year.

How It Happened (Game 1): Joe Satterfield drew a leadoff walk in the last of the first for Elon before back-to-back singles from Ogren and Kyle Jackson led to the first Phoenix run of the day.

The Phoenix pushed its lead to 3-0 with a pair of second-inning runs. With runners on first and second with two down, Ogren lined a single to right to score Hayden Platt who had started the frame with a walk. Elon would score a second run on a Blue Hen fielding error before the inning concluded.

Will Nance led off the bottom of the third by sending an 0-1 pitch off the batter’s eye in center for his third home run of the season and a 4-0 Phoenix advantage.

After a pair of scoreless innings, Elon loaded the bases in the sixth with a pair of walks sandwiched around a Cam Devanney double. Satterfield then drove a ball to center to score one before back-to-back walks scored two more Phoenix runs as the maroon and gold built a 7-0 advantage. Once Nance made it an 8-0 game with a single to center, Adcock upped the lead to 11 runs with a bases-clearing double off the base of the wall in left-center.

Delaware was able to erase the shutout in the seventh when Andrew Reich scored on Doug Trimble’s single through the right side. Elon got that run back in the bottom half when Zach Evers, who reached on an error, scored on an Ogren single. The Phoenix did not stop there though; as Shawn Blake hit a two-run homer with two down to make it a 14-1 game.

Diaz Nardo’s homer off the foul pole in the eight gave Delaware a second run before Garrett Stonehousepicked up an RBI for Elon in the last of the eighth.

How It Happened (Game 2): The two sides were scoreless through four innings before Brian Mayer hit a two-out homer, his ninth of the year, to give Delaware a 1-0 lead in the fifth. Patten pushed the Blue Hen lead to 2-0 the next inning with a solo homer to left-center.

Kyle Jackson led off the Phoenix sixth with a walk, stole second and went to third on a fly out. Adcock struck out, but the ball rolled to the backstop allowing him to reach and Jackson to score Elon’s first run. Elon would threaten for more after a walk and fielder’s choice put runners on the corners with two outs, but Delaware escaped the jam with a strikeout.

Delaware got a little breathing room on the eighth inning. Trimble led off with a walk and headed to second on Jeremy Ake’s bunt single. After a strikeout, Calvin Scott grounded one up the middle to plate Trimble to make it a 3-1 contest.

Adcock cut in to that breathing room in the bottom of the inning as he sent a one-out shot over the batter’s eye in center to trim the deficit to a run.

Elon would get the tying run on base in the ninth on Satterfield’s infield single, but was unable to advance him any further as Delaware escaped with a fly out to right-center, a strike out and a fly ball to center.

Notes: Brnovich moved to second place on Elon’s Division I freshman strikeout list with 74… Brnovich’s win makes him one of just five Elon freshmen at the Division I level to earn five or more wins in their rookie season… Adcock’s three hits in game one matched a personal-best, while his three RBI in that game were his high.

On Deck: Elon will visit North Carolina for a 6 p.m. contest with the Tar Heels on Tuesday, April 25.