KUTZTOWN, Pa. – The typical North Campus gusts weren't present on Tuesday afternoon, but that didn't stop the Kutztown University baseball team from putting up a season-high 19 runs in a 19-5 victory over the Wilmington (Del.) Wildcats in a seven-inning non-conference game at North Campus Field.
The Golden Bears (8-10 overall) saw 12 different batters reach safely at least once on the day, thanks in large part to the team's 12 walks, 10 hits and four hit batters. The runs came in droves in the fourth, fifth and sixth innings, stifling the visiting Wildcats (15-8) – a team that garnered votes for the American Baseball Coaches Association Polls earlier in the day – as it scrambled to find answers for the lively KU bats.
Kutztown got on the board first with a three-run second inning, two runs of which came in thanks to a one-out double by
Cam Burr (Reading, Pa./Muhlenberg). Wilmington managed to knot things up in the third, but the bottom of the fourth turned out to be a rocky inning for the visitors.
The Wildcats used four different pitchers in the seven-run inning, and while Kutztown had just one hit in the frame – a base-clearing, three-run double to deep left center by
Dalton Furst (Kutztown, Pa./Kutztown) – the opportunities granted by Wilmington were too good for the Golden Bears to pass up.
What followed from the Golden Bears was a six-run fifth inning, and the team added three more runs in the sixth frame for good measure to break the Wildcats' six-game winning streak.
Junior
Dalton Furst (Kutztown, Pa./Kutztown) had quite the afternoon for Kutztown, going 3-for-3 with five RBI and a pair of runs. Burr, playing second base on the day, went 2-for-3 with a trio of batters sent home as well as two walks and two runs scored. Outfielder
Joel Bonner (Hulmeville, Pa./Neshaminy) reached base with three walks while scoring three runs, while
Aiden Soumas (Blandon, Pa./Fleetwood) went 2-for-5 with a pair of RBIs in the win. A number of players came in as offensive substitutions throughout the game, including
Dom Innamorati (Duryea, Pa./Pittston) (2 ABs),
Shane Rosenberry (Reading, Pa./Muhlenberg) (BB, run),
Preston Warne (Nazareth, Pa./Nazareth) (BB, run),
Owen Rector (Nottingham, Pa./Oxford) (RBI) and
Eddie Frye (Lorton, Va./South County) (BB, run).
The powerful offensive display backed up the five strong innings from junior pitcher
Zack Wertman (Mifflinburg, Pa./Mifflinburg) (W, 1-0), who struck out a pair and allowed just five hits and three runs on 91 pitches.
Jeremy Fallon (Souderton, Pa./Souderton) and
Logan Woodward (Furlong, Pa./Germantown Academy) each pitched an inning to shut down the Wildcats.
Wilmington's Steven Mann (L, 0-2) took the loss after pitching two plus innings and allowing three runs (none earned) across 39 pitches. Starter Charlie Porter went just over an inning but escaped a decision thanks to the three-run third inning from Wilmington. Relievers Yoshi Conti and Gerrett Overby failed to record an out, while the three relievers that followed combined for 98 pitches across 2.1 innings while allowing 11 runs (eight earned).
The 19 runs scored is the highest mark since a 20-10 victory over the Lincoln (Pa.) Lions on March 15, 2023. This marks the largest margin of victory against Wilmington, as the team now holds a 20-12 advantage over the Wildcats, one that includes an 11-6 home mark at North Campus Field (since 2012).
For seventh-year skipper
Eric Folmar, the victory marks his 100th win with the Golden Bears. He is the fourth KU coach to reach the triple-digit win threshold, with the other three – Walt Risley (1946-71), Matt Royer (1994-2002) and Chris Blum (2003-19) setting up the program for great opportunities like today's game in their time donning the Maroon and Gold.
The Golden Bears will travel to Mansfield on Friday, Mar. 27, as it resumes conference play against the Mountaineers with a doubleheader set to begin at 1 p.m. It returns to North Campus Field on Saturday, Mar. 28, for the home portion of the series with first pitch times set for 1 and 3 p.m. Prior to the first home game, the team will have a time to honor the life of the late Golden Bear pitcherÂ
Stephen Hood (Lansford, Pa./Panther Valley), with the ceremony beginning at 12:40 p.m.
