Baseball 4/9/2025 9:23:00 AM Kyle Jones

Rompala-Matthews Secures Career High Nine Strikeouts; Gorloks Clutch Hitting Helps Sweep Blackburn

Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 CARLINVILLE. Ill. - The Webster University baseball team continued conference play with a visit to Blackburn College on Tuesday. WU's Elijah Rompala-Matthews recorded a career high nine strikeouts in game one as the Gorloks rallied late with clutch hitting in game two that led to the sweep over Blackburn. With the victories, Webster improves to 21-6 overall and 9-1 in conference play.

Game One: Webster 3, Blackburn 2
Webster and Blackburn opened the doubleheader with a scoreless first inning led by starting pitchers Alex Coffman and Elijah Rompala-Matthews. In the top of the second, senior R.J. LaRocco got the inning started with a hit-by-pitch, advanced to second on a passed ball, and advanced to third on a single by Ryan Hartz. With runners on the corners, the Gorloks executed the double-steal that allowed LaRocco to score for the 1-0 lead. With one out, Dalton Groves drove in Hartz with a sacrifice fly that increased the lead to 2-0.

In the bottom of the second, Rompala-Matthews recorded his second consecutive scoreless inning that included two strikeouts. In the bottom of the third, he added a strikeout that led to his third straight scoreless inning.

In the top of the fourth, the Gorloks added a single run that came off the bat of Groves that scored Ben Stedman for the 3-0 lead. In the bottom half, Blackburn recorded three consecutive hits that produced a run. Rompala-Matthews got out of the inning with back-to-back strikeouts that kept the score at 3-1.

In the middle innings, Webster and Blackburn recorded third scoreless innings till the eighth inning. In the bottom of the eighth, Rompala-Matthews allowed two hits that ended his outing. Webster made a pitching change to Joel Arsenault. Moments later, Blackburn executed the double-steal attempt with runners on the corners that cut the lead down to one at 3-2.

In the bottom of the ninth, Arsenault recorded two strikeouts and a flyout that earned his eighth save of the season.

For the game, Rompala-Matthews pitched 7.1 innings and recorded a career-high nine strikeouts. Droves drove in two runs while Evan Evola recorded two hits.

Game Two: Webster 9, Blackburn 5
Senior starting pitcher J.T. Miller earned his fourth start of the season on the mound and recorded a scoreless first inning that included two strikeouts. In the top of the second, the Gorloks put two runs on the scoreboard that came off an RBI single by Hartz and a sacrifice fly by James Theodore for the early 2-0 advantage. In the bottom half, Miller added a strikeout that led to his second scoreless inning of the game.

In the top of the third, the Gorloks added a single run on a RBI double to right by Stedman that increased the lead to 3-0. In the bottom half, Miller recorded two strikeouts and a flyout that kept Blackburn off the scoreboard. In the bottom of the fourth, the Beavers got on the scoreboard with a solo homer by Diego Perez that made the score 3-1.

In the bottom of the fifth, Webster made their first pitching change of the game and entered in Jack Wilson. Wilson got out of a first and third situation with a strikeout that kept the score at 3-1. In the bottom of the sixth, Blackburn countered with a three-run inning on back-to-back doubles that generated the 4-3 deficit. In the bottom of the seventh, Blackburn added a single run on a RBI double by Perez that made the score 3-5.

In the top of the eighth, Stedman got the inning started with a lead off single to center. Moments later, Hartz launched a two-run homer that tied that game at five apiece. Following consecutive walks drawn by Nick Wrubluski and Jacob Charlson, Karl Peters was hit by the pitch that loaded the bases. With one out, Evola drove in Wrubluski with a sacrifice fly that put the Gorloks back on top at 6-5. In the bottom half, McBride recorded a scoreless inning that included two strikeouts and a popout that kept the Gorloks ahead at 6-5.

In the top of the ninth, the Gorloks added three insurance runs that included a two-run double by Charlson and a sacrifice flyout by Theodore that scored Hartz that increased the lead to 9-5. In the bottom of the ninth, McBride recorded two flyouts and a strikeout that helped secure the victory.

For the game, Hartz went 2-for-4 with a two-run homer and three RBI's. In addition, Charlson recorded two hits and tied Theodore with two RBI's. On the mound, Miller pitched four innings and struck out six batters while McBride pitched 3.2 innings and was credited with the win.

The Gorloks will revert back to non-conference play this Thursday, April 10 hosting Millikin University starting at 4:00PM in Sauget, Illinois.

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Players Mentioned

#44 Joel Arsenault: SS/P; 6' 1"; Senior; R/R

#12 Evan Evola: 1B/3B; 6' 2"; Junior; R/R

#4 R.J. LaRocco: C/OF; 5' 10"; Senior; R/R

#26 J.T. Miller: P; 6' 4"; Senior; R/R

#25 Elijah Rompala-Matthews: RHP; 6' 6"; Sophomore; R/R

#00 Ben Stedman: INF; 5' 10"; Junior

#5 Jacob Charlson: INF; 5' 9"; Freshman

#7 Karl Peters: OF/INF; 5' 11"; Junior

#11 James Theodore: OF; 5' 8"; Freshman

#8 Nick Wrubluski: C; 5' 10"; Junior

Players Mentioned

#44 Joel Arsenault
: 6' 1"; Senior; R/R
: SS/P

#12 Evan Evola
: 6' 2"; Junior; R/R
: 1B/3B

#4 R.J. LaRocco
: 5' 10"; Senior; R/R
: C/OF

#26 J.T. Miller
: 6' 4"; Senior; R/R
: P

#25 Elijah Rompala-Matthews
: 6' 6"; Sophomore; R/R
: RHP

#00 Ben Stedman
: 5' 10"; Junior
: INF

#5 Jacob Charlson
: 5' 9"; Freshman
: INF

#7 Karl Peters
: 5' 11"; Junior
: OF/INF

#11 James Theodore
: 5' 8"; Freshman
: OF

#8 Nick Wrubluski
: 5' 10"; Junior
: C