Teammates celebrate with Braden Mazone following his home run on Saturday. (Photo: Primo Greenway)
Steven Millbrook
Staff Writer
CLAYTON, MO — After getting back on the winning track with a win over Illinois Wesleyan last Sunday, the Washington University Bears continued their winning ways by sweeping all three games over the University of Chicago Maroons this weekend.
And the Bears did it in thrilling fashion, as they scored at least 10 runs in all three games and outscored the Maroons 38-9 in the series.
With its four-game winning streak, WashU is now 9-3 on the season. Chicago is now 1-6 on the year.
Game 1 – WashU 15, Chicago 0
| NCAA Baseball | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago (1-4) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| WashU (7-3) | 6 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 1 | X | 15 | 14 | 0 |
WP: Will Henkel – WashU (3-1) LP: H. Leiderman – CHI (0-2)
The Bears jumped right on top of the Maroons in the first game of a doubleheader on Saturday. WashU scored six runs in the bottom of the first and never looked back, as it banged out 14 hits, including six doubles and home runs by Braden Mazone and Evan Minarovic.
Will Henkel (3-1) got the start and the win on the mound for the Bears.
Game 2 – WashU 11, Chicago 1
| NCAA Baseball | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago (1-5) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 1 |
| WashU (8-3) | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 11 | 14 | 0 |
WP: Matt Lopes – WashU (3-0) LP: G. Tenuta – CHI (0-2)
In Saturday’s nightcap, the Bears didn’t get going until midway through, when they sent eight batters to the plate and scored four runs.
Mazone got the scoring started with a sacrifice fly and Clayton Miller followed with an RBI single. But the big blow was a defensive error on a fly ball to right that allowed two WashU runners to score.
The Bears added another run in the fourth and two more in the fifth to take a 7-1 lead into the sixth inning.
WashU put the game away when it scored four times again in the seventh, with the final run coming on an RBI hit by Shane Pellegrino.
Matt Lopes (3-0) pitched five strong innings, allowing just one run on four hits, with two walks and nine strikeouts. Hank Weiss pitched a scoreless sixth and seventh inning to finish out the game.
Game 3 – WashU 12, Chicago 8
| NCAA Baseball | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago (1-6) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 8 | 9 | 1 |
| WashU (9-3) | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 | X | 12 | 12 | 0 |
WP: Townsend Stevenson – WashU (1-1) LP: J. Butka – CHI (0-1)
The series finale saw Chicago take the lead in the top of the first. But the Bears answered back with two runs in the third, then after Chicago responded with a run of its own in the top of the fourth, WashU blasted out three more runs of its own in the bottom half to go up 5-2.
The big inning though, was the bottom of the seventh, when the Bears benefitted from six walks and a fielding error to score six runs to go up 12-3.
Chicago scored five runs in the top of the ninth, but WashU’s Miller came in to pitch and got the final two outs to close out the game.
At that plate that day, junior centerfielder Brandon Buday had three hits, three RBIs, and scored two runs. Miller, who began the game was WashU’s designated hitter, walked three times, drove in two runs, and scored two runs.
WashU will be on the road for a pair of games this week. The Bears will be in Memphis to play a two-game set against Rhodes College on Tuesday and Wednesday.
First pitch both days is set for noon.
The Bears will be back in St. Louis next weekend for a pair of Saturday and Sunday doubleheaders at Kelly Field against Gustavus Adolphus College. All the action on those days will began at 11 a.m.
WASHU BEARS 2024 BASEBALL SCHEDULE
| Date | Time | At | Opponent | Location | Tournament |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March 12, 2024 (Tuesday) | 12 p.m. | Away | Rhodes College | Memphis, Tenn. | |
| March 13, 2024 (Wednesday) | 12 p.m. | Away | Rhodes College | Memphis, Tenn. | |
| March 16, 2024 (Saturday) | 11 a.m. | Home | Gustavus Adolphus College | Kelly Field | |
| March 16, 2024 (Saturday) | 2 p.m. | Home | Gustavus Adolphus College | Kelly Field | |
| March 17, 2024 (Sunday) | 11 a.m. | Home | Gustavus Adolphus College | Kelly Field | |
| March 17, 2024 (Sunday) | 2 p.m. | Home | Gustavus Adolphus College | Kelly Field | |
| March 20, 2024 (Wednesday) | 3 p.m. | Away | Webster University | Sauget, Ill. / Grizzlies Ballpark | |
| March 23, 2024 (Saturday) | 12 p.m. | Home | Wisconsin-La Crosse | Kelly Field | |
| March 23, 2024 (Saturday) | 3 p.m. | Home | Wisconsin-La Crosse | Kelly Field | |
| March 24, 2024 (Sunday) | 12 p.m. | Home | Wisconsin-La Crosse | Kelly Field | |
| March 29, 2024 (Friday) | 3 p.m. | Home | New York University | Kelly Field | |
| March 30, 2024 (Saturday) | 12 p.m. | Home | New York University | Kelly Field | |
| March 30, 2024 (Saturday) | 3 p.m. | Home | New York University | Kelly Field | |
| March 31, 2024 (Sunday) | 11 a.m. | Home | New York University | Kelly Field | |
| April 3, 2024 (Wednesday) | 3 p.m. | Home | Fontbonne University | Kelly Field | |
| April 10, 2024 (Wednesday) | 3 p.m. | Home | Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology | Kelly Field | |
| April 12, 2024 (Friday) | 3 p.m. | Home | Emory University | Kelly Field | |
| April 13, 2024 (Saturday) | 12 p.m. | Home | Emory University | Kelly Field | |
| April 13, 2024 (Saturday) | 3 p.m. | Home | Emory University | Kelly Field | |
| April 14, 2024 (Sunday) | 11 a.m. | Home | Emory University | Kelly Field | |
| April 19, 2024 (Friday) | 3 p.m. EST | Away | Brandeis University | Boston, Mass. | |
| April 20, 2024 (Saturday) | 12 p.m. EST | Away | Brandeis University | Boston, Mass. | |
| April 20, 2024 (Saturday) | 3 p.m. EST | Away | Brandeis University | Boston, Mass. | |
| April 21, 2024 (Sunday) | 11 a.m. EST | Away | Brandeis University | Boston, Mass. | |
| April 26, 2024 (Friday) | 3 p.m. EST | Away | Case Western Reserve University | Cleveland, Ohio | |
| April 27, 2024 (Saturday) | 12 p.m. EST | Away | Case Western Reserve University | Cleveland, Ohio | |
| April 27, 2024 (Saturday) | 3 p.m. EST | Away | Case Western Reserve University | Cleveland, Ohio | |
| April 28, 2024 (Sunday) | 11 a.m. EST | Away | Case Western Reserve University | Cleveland, Ohio | |
| May 17-19, 2024 | TBA | Neutral | NCAA Regionals | TBA | NCAA Regionals |
| May 24-26, 2024 | TBA | Neutral | NCAA Super Regionals | TBA | NCAA Super Regionals |
| May 31-June 6, 2024 | TBA | Neutral | NCAA Division III World Series | Eastlake, Ohio | NCAA Division III World Series |