The Webster University baseball team built up a 6-0 lead before settling for a 7-4 win over Iowa Wesleyan University on April 2 in Mt. Pleasant, IA. Webster's Jack Bensinger had a quality start on the mound for the Gorloks and six different Webster batters banged out two hits each in the victory.
Webster manufactured a run in the first on singles by Mike Wick (SO, Bartlett, IL/Bartlett HS) and Jake Milosch (FR, St. Charles, IL/St. Charles East HS), and a two-run double by Kyle Uhrich (JR, St. Louis, MO/Webster Groves HS) in the third put the Gorloks up, 4-0. Uhrich doubled and scored in the fifth, and singles by Brandon Smith (JR, Imperial, MO/Seckman HS), Milosch, and Blake Thomas (SR, Troy, IL/Triad HS) manufactured another run in the seventh for a 6-0 Webster lead.
Bensinger (GR, Los Angeles, CA/Campbell Hall) got into a jam with one down in the seventh after allowing a single and a walk. Zach Alexander (SO, Geneoso,IL/Geneoso HS) came on in relief and after a Gorlok error allowed a run to score, Alexander struck out the next two batters to end the threat and threw a scoreless eighth.
Mike Golich (SO, Aurora, IL/West Aurora HS) walked and stole second and third, scoring on a Smith single in the eighth for another insurance run for a 7-1 lead. Joe Elfink (JR, Leopold, MO/Leopold HS) came in to pitch the ninth but hit a batter and after allowing two singles and a double, it was a 7-3 game. Brett Jungles (JR, Naperville, IL/St. Francis HS) was called on to end the rally and coaxed a groundout, that scored a run, and struck out the final batter for his first save.
Bensinger went 6 1/3 innings, giving up three hits, three walks, and no earned runs while striking out seven. He improves to 4-2 on the year and lowered his earned run average to 1.97. Alexander went 1 2/3 innings, striking out three and giving up one hit. Jungles went 2/3 of an inning with a strikeout for the save.
Uhrich was 2-4, with two doubles, two RBIs, a stolen base, walk, and run scored. Smith was 2-4 with three stolen bases, and RBI, walk, and run scored. Wick was 2-5 with two runs and a stolen base, and Golich was 2-3 with four stolen bases, two runs scored, and a walk. The old 'Go-Go Gorloks' resurfaced as Webster stole 10 bases in the game,
Webster is 5-1 in the SLIAC and 11-9 overall with the win. Wesleyan is 2-1 in the SLIAC and 6-9 with the loss.
Webster will complete its weekend series with Iowa Wesleyan with a doubleheader on April 3 in Mt. Pleasant. The Gorloks will travel to Greenville College (IL) for a doubleheader on April 5.
