The Shippensburg University baseball team posted a pair of double-digit run totals in a road sweep of Mansfield in a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Eastern Division doubleheader Thursday at Joseph Shaute Field, 12-0 and 10-4.
Shippensburg (25-17, 12-10 PSAC East) snapped a five-game losing skid with a complete offensive performance against Mansfield (12-30, 3-19). In both games, all nine players in the SU starting lineup produced a hit, an RBI or a run scored.
Ty Sherman collected four hits (4-for-9) in the doubleheader, while
Thomas Cano-Piszel slugged his eighth and ninth home runs of the season in the opener. He went 3-for-9 (.333) in the doubleheader with three RBI and three runs scored.
Conner Barto fired a shutout in Game 1 for his eighth victory of the season – tied for most in the PSAC, while
Jonah Mayer recorded a career-best eight punchouts in Game 2.
Shippensburg next hosts Mansfield for Senior Day Friday at Fairchild Field. Game 1 of the doubleheader is set for 1 p.m.
Game 1: Shippensburg 12, Mansfield 0
Cano-Piszel went deep twice and Barto allowed just four singles in seven frames as the Raiders cruised to victory in Thursday's opener.
Cano-Piszel's home runs came in his first two plate appearances, launching a two-run home run in a five-run top half of the first and a solo shot to make it 6-0 Shippensburg just an inning later.
The runs were more than enough for Barto, who was perfect through four innings Thursday. He finished with five strikeouts.
Will Oates,
Brady Harbach and
Caden Lloyd produced RBI hits to help stake Barto to a big early lead.
Mason Morris and Lloyd added RBI doubles in the third and fifth innings, respectively, to expand the SU lead to 9-0.
Drew Brown delivered a pair of sacrifice flies late in the contest. Brown's two runs driven in represented a new career high.
Jake Pope also delivered an RBI single.
Sherman finished with three hits and two runs scored. Lloyd went 3-for-4 with two RBI and a run scored, while Cano-Piszel totaled two hits and three runs driven in.
The outing was Barto's second complete game shutout of the season. His previous came in a 5-0 SU victory Feb. 27 at Slippery Rock.
Game 2: Shippensburg 10, Mansfield 4
Shippensburg delivered the same formula that produced a victory in Game 1 in the nightcap, once again piling on runs in support of a strong starting pitching performance.
Evan Shoffler stroked a second-inning RBI double to begin the scoring. Mansfield drew level with a run in the second and the game remained even until the top half of the fourth.
Ship scored the go-ahead run on a Mansfield error, and
Kyle Ausgotharp punched an RBI single through the right side of the Mountaineer infield to continue the rally.
Mike Heckman followed with a sacrifice bunt that resulted in a two-run throwing error, and Morris then brought Heckman home with a sacrifice fly to make it 6-1 Shippensburg.
Shoffler singled home Oates, and Heckman drew a bases-loaded walk as both teams plated a pair of fifth inning runs. Harbach capped the SU scoring with a two-run single in the sixth.
Harbach (2-for-4, two runs, two RBI) and Shoffler (2-for-4, three RBI) had big games for the Raiders offensively.
Mayer, in addition to setting a career high in strikeouts, scattered five hits and one walk over five frames and was charged with three earned runs.
Dom DiBlasi allowed a run in two innings of relief.
