A strong offensive performance led the Spiders to four consecutive wins against St. Peter’s and University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) this weekend.
At the beginning of the weekend, Richmond won its home opener against St. Peter’s 10-0 with a walk-off double from Michael Morman, ending the game by mercy rule in the seventh inning. Freshman pitcher Matt Olson threw a shutout to get his second win of the season.
In the second game against UMES, Spiders' captain Doug Kraeger got four hits in four at-bats, and hit for the cycle, meaning he hit a single, double, triple and run. Right-hand pitcher Dan Martinson threw a shutout with the help of Daniel Brumbaugh, who came in for relief in the fifth inning. This game also ended in the seventh inning by the mercy rule, 15-0.
The Spiders played the final two games of the series on Sunday, the first against St. Peters. The Peacocks got off to a quick start with a run in the first, while holding Richmond scoreless until the third inning. Sophomore catcher Kyle Adams and junior outfielder Kurtis Brown hit back-to-back doubles in the third, which sparked a seven-run offensive outburst for the Spiders.
St. Peters never regained its footing and scored only one more run in the fourth inning. The Spiders matched the one run in the fourth and extended their lead throughout the remaining innings. The final score was 12-2.
The final game of the the dual series exposed a potential weakness for the Spiders – pitching depth. With a tight four-game series in three days, Richmond put three pitchers on the mound to finish off UMES but allowed four runs in the process.
“I think our question mark in how we look forward to the season is going to be the depth of the pitching and the amount of the pitching to be able to get outs,” Richmond coach Tracy Woodson said.
Three of the UMES runs came in a late, eighth-inning rally with Richmond reliever Aaron Newman on the mound. Nevertheless, the Spiders held the three-run lead in the ninth and came out with the fourth win of the weekend, 7-4.
“Today we were able to get two more wins, so that’s all I’m really worried about,” Kraeger said after Sunday's games. “I’m confident going forward that we’ll be able to put up numbers again.”
The Spiders will play the VMI Keydets, who just swept a three-game series with Lafayette, at 2:30 p.m. on Tuesday.
Contact sportswriter Colby Wilcox at colby.wilcox@richmond.edu
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