LaGrange finished a two-game sweep of Capital with a 3-1 win Wednesday at Cleaveland Field. The Panthers are now 7-4 on the season, while the Crusaders dropped to 1-4.
The Panthers were held to just three hits in the game. Craig Mobley had a triple in his only at-bat, while Brent Kinsey and David Miller each had a single.
Neal Smith (2-1) scattered four hits and allowed a run in six innings. Smith walked two, hit three and struck out four.
Doug Scherer allowed three hits in two innings and struck out a batter. Mason Webster closed out the game with a scoreless ninth inning to pick up his first save of the season.
The Panthers took a 1-0 lead in the first inning. Miller drove in Phil Woods with a base hit to right field for the first run of the game.
Capital tied the game in the fourth inning. John Rowan led off with a double and later scored on Jacob Thuman's sacrifice fly.
Capital threatened in the fifth inning. The Crusaders had runners at second and third with one out, but Smith got Rowan to line out for the second out. After a walk, Smith struck out Thuman looking to end the threat.
The Panthers took the lead in the sixth inning without benefit of a hit. They loaded the bases with one out on a pair of walks and a hit batter.
Sam Sifferlin relieved starter Kevin Brennan (0-1) and walked Luis Perez to force in Travis Ross with the go-ahead run. Mobley scored on a wild pitch to put the Panthers up 3-1.
Scherer pitched out of a jam in the eighth inning. Ian Smith and Thuman led off the inning with back-to-back singles. Both runners moved up on a sacrifice. Scherer struck out pinch-hitter James Oldfield and got Anthony Calabreese to ground out to end the inning.
Capital had seven hits in the game and stranded 11 runners, eight in scoring position. The Panthers stranded seven runners.
The Panthers host Mt. Aloysius on Saturday at 1 p.m.
