By: Frank Maira, Assistant Director of Athletics/Sports Information Director
Mont Alto Pa. – Cole Bower, Joe Garrish and Clark Payne combined to shutout Christendom College as the Penn State Mont Alto baseball team swept the Crusaders 10-0, 9-0 on Wednesday. Bower took the mound in game one for his first career start and threw six shutout innings and struck out four batters while Garrish fanned six across six innings of work and Payne came in as a relief pitcher and was effective.
Cole Bower was sharp from the first pitch as he only scattered three hits in the shutout. Mont Alto opened the scoring in the bottom of the second inning when Lowell Singer drove in Brady Topper on an RBI single. The Lions added a pair of runs to make it 3-0 an inning later. Matt Taylor hit a towering sacrifice fly and Brady Topper singled to left field scoring Tyler Martin.
Mont Alto scored six combined runs across the fourth and fifth innings. Matt Taylor doubled to right centerfield scoring Colby Black and Jeremiah Younker hit his first triple of the season driving in a pair in the fourth inning. Tanner Rhoads pitch-hit in the bottom of the fifth and delivered with an RBI single and later scored on a passed ball. Taylor hit another double driving in Black to make it 9-0. The Lions final tally occurred on a sacrifice fly by Spencer Meyers.
Junior pitcher Joe Garrish also made his first career start in game two and quickly found his groove striking out the first batter of the game. Both teams were held scoreless until the second inning when Brady Topper led off the bottom of the frame with a double to right field. Topper scored a batter later on a Joel Clabaugh double. Nathan Kulp grounded into a fielders choice making it 2-0. The Lions offence didn't let up in the third inning when they scored four runs on five hits within the inning building a 6-0 lead. Mont Alto concluded the games scoring in the sixth inning, which was highlighted by a bases clearing single off the bat of Clabaugh.
The Lions have a busy weekend ahead of them, hosting conference foes Penn State New Kensington on Saturday for a doubleheader.
