Griffins Season Comes To Heartbreaking End Against Westminster

ST. LOUIS, Mo.—After cutting a 7-0 deficit down to one in the seventh, the Fontbonne University baseball team had hopes of completing the comeback, but the Westminster Blue Jays fended off the Griffins for the 8-6 win and clinched the final spot in the SLIAC Tournament.

Score: Westminster 8, Fontbonne 6

Location: Shaw Park

Records: Westminster (17-13; 13-8 SLIAC), Fontbonne (25-13; 12-10 SLIAC)

How It Happened

It was a scoreless contest up until the third inning when the Blue Jays plated six runs on three hits and were helped by three Fontbonne errors.

An RBI double by Will Stonecipher in the fourth extended the teams advantage out to 7-0. However, Fontbonne answered in the fifth.

After a single by Matt Manint and a walk to Tyler Chambliss, Lance Chapman ripped a 3-run shot to left, his fifth on the year, to trim the deficit down to 7-3.

The Griffins carried that momentum into the sixth. A hit-by-pitch to Michael Puckett, Jr., a single by Manint, and another hit-by-pitch to Chambliss had the Griffins in business with nobody out.

After a strikeout, Matt Tossick put the ball in play and reached base on an error, allowing Puckett, Jr., to score. Jonathan Hoevelmann tallied an RBI sacrifice-fly to center to plate Manint to make it a 7-5 contest.

In the bottom of the seventh, with two outs, Puckett, Jr., tacked on his seventh homer on the season over the left field wall to put Fontbonne down just one.

However, the Blue Jays added another run in the ninth to give them an 8-6 lead. Westminster did have the bases loaded, including posting runners on second and third with nobody out, but Jake Jump came out of the pen to strikeout the side.

In the bottom of the inning, the Griffins brought the tying run to the plate, though Ethan Rackers was able to retire the final two batters for his second save in as many days.

Fontbonne Notables

• John Hughes fell to 3-3 on the year after allowing three earned runs in 3.2 innings pitched.
• Mike Jacobson did what he could out of the pen allowing one run on two hits and sat down three in his 4.1 innings pitched.
• Offensively, Chapman led the Griffins with three RBI.
• Manint went 2-for-3 with two runs scored.
• Puckett, Jr., and Hoevelmann had an RBI each.

Westminster Notables

• Reliever Andrew Boessen earned his third win after allowing three runs (two earned) in 2.2 innings pitched.
• Stonecipher led the offense going 2-for-5 with a run scored and three RBI.
• Ryan Clavin and Braden Beasley contributed an RBI each.

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