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3
Winner Millersville MILL-B 11-5, 1-0 PSAC E
2
Kutztown KUTZ-B 4-10, 0-1 PSAC E
Winner
Millersville MILL-B
11-5, 1-0 PSAC E
3
Final
2
Kutztown KUTZ-B
4-10, 0-1 PSAC E
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Millersville MILL-B 0 2 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 3 3 1
Kutztown KUTZ-B 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 4 3

W: Ben Wilchacky (5-0) L: Male, Zach (0-5) S: Kris Pirozzi (2)

Kutztown's Zach Male pitches in a game against Millersville March 11, 2022.
Bill Snook

Game Recap: Baseball | | Connor Teschko, Sports Information Graduate Assistant

Male limits Marauders to two hits, but Golden Bears fall in PSAC East opener

KUTZOTWN, Pa. -- Zach Male (Royersford, Pa./Spring-Ford) held PSAC East preseason favorite Millersville to three runs on two hits over 7.2 innings in Kutztown's home and conference opener Friday afternoon, but a sixth-inning RBI ground out was enough for the visiting Marauders to pull out a 3-2 victory at North Campus Field.

Pitching and defense ruled the day, as the teams combined for just seven hits --all singles-- through nine innings of play.
 
Male was the story of the game for the Golden Bears, allowing only two hits and two walks while fanning five Marauders in the process. He kept Millersville (11-5, 1-0 PSAC East) off the board in five of his 7+ innings, but Kutztown's offense couldn't break through after scoring two first-inning runs, saddling the Royersford native with the tough-luck defeat.
 
The Maroon and Gold jumped in front in the first with some help from the Marauders. Mike Kelly (Schwenksville, Pa./Pope John Paul II) led off with a single, but Millersville starter Ben Wilchacky hit both Gavin Moretski (Harleysville, Pa./La Salle College H.S.) and Mitchell Peers (Gilbertsville, Pa./Boyertown) to load the bases with no outs. Kelly scored the game's first run on a wild pitch and Moretski later crossed on a balk from Wilchacky to make it 2-0.

Kutztown's (4-10, 0-1 PSAC East) lead was short-lived, as Millersville tied the game in the top of the second due to some suspect defense by the Golden Bears. Keegan Soltis, who drew a walk to start the inning, scored on an KU's second error of the inning and Tyler Wright's RBI ground out brought in Chase Simmons to even the score at two.

Male and Wilchacky both settled in after the early back-and-forth. Male retired nine consecutive Marauders before Bren Taylor led off the sixth with a single to right field. Thomas Caufield followed with another single to the same spot, moving Taylor to third. A ground out by Soltis to Moretski at third brought Taylor home with what turned out to be the winning run, before Male struck out Simmons to end the inning.
 
Kutztown threatened to even things again in the bottom of the sixth. Mitchell Peers (Gilbertsville, Pa./Boyertown) hit a bloop single inside the left field line and a defensive miscue by the Marauders set the Bears up with runners on the corners and one out. Southpaw Christian Wingard came on in relief and got pinch-hitter Mike Piscotty (Wilkes-Barre, Pa./Hanover Area) to ground into an inning-ending 4-6-3 double play on his first pitch.

Male threw a 1-2-3 seventh and got the first two batters in the eighth before walking Caufield to complete his day after 96 pitches. Freshman Paul Moretski (Harleysville, Pa./Lansdale Catholic) relieved Male, shutting the door in the eighth and striking out two over the final 1.1 innings.
 
Wilchacky improved to 5-0 on the season with two runs allowed on four hits over 5.1 innings. He struck out three. Wingard and Kris Pirozzi didn't allow a hit over the final 3.2 frames, with Pirozzi fanning three in two innings to earn the save.

Kelly, Gavin Moretski (Harleysville, Pa./La Salle College H.S.), Peers and Ethan Martini (Trevose, Pa./Father Judge) accounted for KU's hits. Kelly finished 1-for-2, while also drawing a pair of walks.

Kutztown and Millersville pushed Saturday's doubleheader at Millersville to Sunday due to the forecasted snow for Saturday, but mutually decided Friday night to further postpone the games. The two teams will likely try to get the games in early next week, but a makeup date has not yet been announced.
 
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Scoring Summary

Score By Innings
Play MILL-B KUTZ-B
KUTZ-B BOT 1st M. Peers advanced to second on a wild pitch; G. Moretski advanced to third on a wild pitch; Mike Kelly scored on a wild pitch. 0 1
KUTZ-B BOT 1st M. Peers advanced to third on a balk; G. Moretski scored on a balk. 0 2
MILL-B TOP 2nd Sam Morris reached on a fielding error by 1b, RBI (1-0 B); C. Simmons advanced to third; K. Soltis scored. 1 2
MILL-B TOP 2nd Tyler Wright grounded out to p, SAC, bunt, RBI (0-0); Sam Morris advanced to second; C. Simmons scored, unearned. 2 2
MILL-B TOP 6th K. Soltis grounded out to 3b, RBI (1-1 BK); T. Caufield advanced to third; Bren Taylor scored. 3 2

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