Lyon Scots Baseball Team Completes Sweep of Park, 12-5
Marks 16th Straight Victory
PARKVILLE, Mo. – Lyon College will enter the American Midwest Conference Postseason Tournament as the hottest team in the league after the Scots obtained the No. 2-seed with their 16th consecutive victory, a 12-5 triumph over the Park University Pirates at Comfort Field Saturday afternoon.
The Lyon Scots baseball team (33-16) finishes the league chase with a 21-6 record, posting the second-best record behind AMC regular season champion, 9th-ranked Missouri Baptist (42-10), which finished with a 22-5 conference mark and edge the Scots by one game after knocking off Freed-Hardeman, 16-5, on Saturday.
William Woods, which began the final day of the regular season with a 34-9 mark, earned the No. 3-seed.
The Scots will now turn their attention to the postseason tournament, which begins Thursday at Lanphier Park in Springfield, Ill. The double-elimination tournament will match Lyon against the No. 7-seed Mid-Continent Cougars, who are playing their final season after it was announced that Trustees have voted to close the University on June 30. The Cougars entered their final game Saturday with an 18-25 record.
After recording a combined 17 runs and 24 hits during their doubleheader sweep on Friday, the Scots finished off the Pirates with an 18-hit attack on Saturday, which included at least three hits by five different Lyon players.
Leftfielder Joe Campbell (JR/Clarkton Mo.), who entered the game with a team-leading .429 batting average, posted a 4-for-5 afternoon, popping his ninth double of the season, to go along with an RBI and two runs scored. Shortstop Griffin Glaude (JR/Beebe, Ark.) and designated hitter Kevin Manzano (JR/Miami, Fla.) were both 3-for-4 at the dish. Glaude hit his 13th double, to go along with three runs batted in, three runs scored and a walk. Manzano drove in three runs, as well.
Lead-off hitter Kris Kohlstedt (SO/Maumelle, Ark.) was 3-for-6 at the plate, scoring twice and driving in a pair of runs, and first baseman Wes Roberson equaled Glaude with his 13th double, while posting a 3-for-5 effort, with a pair of runs.
Rightfielder Colt Harmon (JR/Greenbrier, Ark.) singled and picked up an RBI and second baseman Mark Armenteros (SR/Miami, Fla.) hit his seventh double and pushed in a run.
Park University (17-23, 12-15 AMC), which will be the sixth seed in the upcoming tourney and will play No. 3-seed William Woods at 4 p.m. on Thursday, was led offensively by Christian Torres. Torres hit a home run and a double, drove in two runs and scored another, while finishing 3-for-5. Josh Garcia was a perfect 2-for-2, with a home run, two RBIs and a run, and JoJo Garcia-Fortuna and Kirk Pruitt each added a pair of singles.
Brenden Camp (SR/Jonesboro, Ark.) improved his record on the hill to 7-4, as he worked eight innings and gained the win. He gave up four runs on 11 hits, with one walk. Jacob Krzemien (FR/The Woodlands, Tex.) finished the contest, allowing one run on two hits with two strikeouts.
Garcia (2-4) took the loss for Park. In 5.2 innings he gave up seven runs (5 earned) on eight hits, with two walks and two strikeouts.
Park took an early 1-0 lead, but the Scots responded with two runs in the third and fifth frames and four more in the top of the sixth to open up an 8-1 advantage.
The Pirates scored a pair in the bottom of the frame, but the Scots scored an insurance run in the seventh, another in the eighth and two more in the ninth to pull away.
Other first-round AMC Postseason Tournament games on Thursday feature No. 1-seed Missouri Baptist battling No. 8-seed Hannibal-LaGrange at 10 a.m. and Benedictine University-Springfield and Freed-Hardeman squaring off at 1 p.m. Their seedings have yet to be finalized between fourth and fifth.