CHILLICOTHE, Ohio – The College of Wooster scored in each of the first eight innings and received a strong start from Matt Felvey, as the Fighting Scots cruised into the championship round of the North Coast Athletic Conference Tournament with a 16-5 triumph against Denison University during Friday's winners' bracket game at VA Memorial stadium.
Wooster (29-13) will play an opponent to be determined in the championship round.
Eddie Reese got things started for the Scots' offense with a two-run homer during the second at bat of the game after Jarrod Mancine had earned an eight-pitch walk. It marked Reese's 10th home run this season.
Reese delivered an RBI in the second inning as well, a sacrifice fly that plated an unearned run.
Denison (21-20) got one back in the bottom of the second, only to see Wooster put up a three spot during the third inning. Frank Vance started the frame with a double inside the first-base line, Cal Thomay then beat out a high infield chopper for a single with Vance scoring on a throwing error. Craig Day singled to left and the ball bounced over the charging outfielder, as Thomay came around and Day wound up on third base. A groundout brought in Day to make it 6-1.
The Scots opened the fourth with a double again, this time off the bat of Zac Mathie, and went on to tally a pair of unearned runs for an 8-1 advantage.
A third-straight double to lead off an inning was provided by Bryan Miller in the fifth, as he snuck one down the left-field line. Miller quickly stole third base and scored on Mathie's sacrifice fly.
Miller and Mancine provided RBI singles during the sixth inning, increasing the margin to double figures (11-1), effectively sealing the outcome.
On the mound, Felvey worked into the bottom of the sixth before giving way to the bullpen. He improved to 8-3 on the season, yielding three runs on six hits over 5.1 innings.
Offensively, Miller led Wooster with three hits (3-for-4) and also walked, while both of Reese's hits were homers just left of straightway center. Vance had a couple of hits (2-for-6), but it was six walks, four hit by pitches, and six Big Red errors that resulted in the lop-sided score.
