GAMBIER, Ohio – The Kenyon College baseball team opened North Coast Athletic Conference play on Saturday afternoon, hosting No. 1 Denison University in a doubleheader at McCloskey Field. The visiting Big Red carried their momentum into conference action and swept the twin bill by scores of 13-4 and 9-1. With the two losses, Kenyon fell to 10-10 overall and 0-2 in conference play, while Denison extended its winning streak to 16 games and improved to 17-1 overall and 2-0 in the NCAC.
Denison wasted little time establishing control in the opener, plating five runs in the top of the first inning. Jack Rollo launched a solo home run to start the scoring, and the Big Red continued to apply pressure with doubles from Erik Sundgren and Max Fishbein, plus RBI knocks from Kelly Crittenberger and Cade Nowik. By the time the inning closed, the Owls were staring at a 5-0 deficit.
Kenyon responded in the bottom of the second. Otto McDill worked a leadoff walk, Gio Giuliani reached on a fielder's choice, and Ben Resnick followed with a single to load the bases. Matt Ardell then drew a walk to force in the Owls' first run, and Tyler Nee followed suit with another bases-loaded walk that trimmed the margin to 5-2. Aaron Moss added a single later in the inning, but the Big Red escaped further damage.
Denison answered immediately in the third, using four hits to plate two more runs. Fishbein doubled home one run, and Nowik added an RBI double of his own to stretch the lead to 7-2. Denison then created more separation in the fourth, capitalizing on a hit batter, a walk, and a pair of Kenyon miscues to score twice more and build a 9-2 advantage.
The Owls showed life again in the bottom of the seventh. Moss reached on an error, McDill followed with a single, and after another Denison error moved both runners up, Giuliani lifted a sacrifice fly to left to bring home Moss. Resnick then lined an RBI single to left, scoring McDill and cutting the deficit to 9-4. Denison, however, slammed the door in the top of the ninth with a four-run frame. Nate Lloyd doubled to start the rally, Nowik followed with a bunt single, and Rollo drove in two runs with a single to right. Andrew Fazio then doubled home two more, putting the finishing touches on the 13-4 result.
Kenyon finished with 11 hits in the opener, with Moss leading the way by going 3-for-5. McDill and Ben Zimmerman each recorded two hits, while Resnick and Giuliani each drove in a run during the late push. On the mound, Sam Howell was charged with the loss after Denison's opening-inning outburst. Peyton Hodges settled things down with 2.2 innings in relief, and the Owls also got appearances from Jack Briscoe, Isaiah Vance, Jack Enger, Dylan Ritzenthaler, and Chris Cannuscio.
The second game followed a similar script, with Denison striking first in the opening inning. Eron Vega singled, advanced to third on a groundout and stolen base, and then scored on Jack Steel's RBI double to center for the early 1-0 lead. In the second, the Big Red pushed across two more runs after a pair of walks, a bunt single, and an error helped extend the margin to 3-0.
The Owls answered in the bottom of the third. Trey Kent-Landrum opened the inning with a single to right and moved into scoring position on a wild pitch. After Zimmerman struck out, Nee lined a single to center to score Kent-Landrum, though he was thrown out trying to stretch it into extra bases. That run trimmed the deficit to 3-1.
Any momentum was short-lived. In the fourth, Denison got a two-run home run from Rollo to move in front 5-1. The Big Red added another run in the seventh when Bobby Haarde singled to short, bringing home Kuyper Lashutka, and then broke the game open in the ninth. Owen Miller doubled, Vega launched a two-run homer, and Sundgren followed with an RBI single to seal the deal.
The Owls were limited to five hits in the nightcap. Zimmerman accounted for two of them, while Kent-Landrum, Ben Russell, and Nee each added one. Nee drove in Kenyon's lone run in the third inning. On the mound, Theo Canning took the loss after allowing three runs over 1.1 innings. Griffin Jackson followed with 3.2 innings of relief and struck out three, while Isaiah Vance and Jackson Niedel closed out the afternoon for the Owls.
Up next, the Owls will step out of conference play for a non-conference home matchup against Allegheny College on Thursday, April 2, with first pitch scheduled for 4 p.m.
