Second-ranked LaGrange celebrated Senior Day with a sweep of Greensboro in a doubleheader Saturday at Cleaveland Field in Williamson Stadium. The Panthers hung on for a 12-10 win in the first game, then won 11-5 in the second game.
LC's 15 seniors were honored before the first game. Casey Bell, Ryan Broaderick, Blake Butcher, Stephen Coelho, Adam DeWitt, Jonathan Fleckenstein, Kyle Gutowski, Toby King, Chad Pigg, Joe Pradat, Cain Sauls, Josh Smith, Blane Swift, Tavin Thompson, and Andrew Weekley played their final Cleaveland Field games.
The Panthers upped their season record to 38-4 and ran their winning streak to eight games. They broke the school season record of 36 wins set by the 2003 team.
Game 1
The Panthers built a 10-0 lead through five innings. Billy Peatross hit a two-run home run as part of a three-run first inning. It was Peatross's first home run of the season.
Greensboro (23-20) came back with a nine-run eighth inning, scoring all of the runs after two outs. LC got a two-run double from Pigg in the bottom of the inning to make it 12-9. Fleckenstein got the final three outs to pick up his fifth save of the season.
Pigg had four hits, including two doubles, in the game and two RBIs. Thompson also had four hits, including a double, scored three runs and drove in two more. Swift had a triple included in his three hits as LC finished with 17 hits in the game.
Weekley pitched five shutout innings to run his record to 9-1. Austin Brown threw two scoreless innings and was followed by King, DeWitt, Austin Perez, and Fleckenstein.
Game 2
Gutowski had three hits, including a triple and drove in five runs to lead the Panthers' 15-hit attack. Butcher also had three hits, including a double, scored three runs and had two RBIs.
LC lead 7-2 after four innings. Butcher's two-run double capped a three-run fourth inning. The Pride came back to cut the lead to two runs, 7-5, after seven innings.
The Panthers put the game out of reach with a four-run eighth inning. They loaded the bases with one out. Gutowski cleared the bases with a triple into the left field corner and came home on Austin Jones' sacrifice fly to make it 11-5.
Smith started and pitched into the fifth, allowing three runs, only two earned. Richie Post (4-1) got the final out in the fifth, then pitched the two more innings to pick up the win. He allowed two runs in the seventh before giving way to Colin Barrett. Barrett closed out the game with two scoreless innings to pick up his third save of the season.
