February 7, 2010

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GREENWOOD, S.C.—Senior first baseman Josh Axelsen (St. Charles, Ill.) connected for a team-high three hits including a home run for St. Andrews Presbyterian College but host Lander University pulled away in both games of Sunday’s season opening doubleheader, 10-1 & 12-4, at Legion Field.

The Bearcats (2-0) and Knights (0-2) will finish their three-game series Monday at 3 p.m. St. Andrews has also announced it has swap sites in its regular season series against Wingate University. SAPC will now play at Wingate on Wednesday, February 10 (3 PM) before hosting the Bulldogs on Tuesday, March 30 (2:30 PM).

Lander totaled 27 hits en route to the sweep as Pete Hernandez had five hits, including a two-run homer, in the two games while Bud Lanier went 4-for-4 in the first game and also had a total of five hits in the double dip.

Axelsen finished the afternoon going 3-for-5 with two runs scored and a stolen base. SAPC was aggressive on the base paths swiping perfect 6-for-6 stolen bases.

GAME ONE: Lander 10, St. Andrews 1
Box Score; Play-By-Play

Lander got off to a good start to the season by scoring four runs on seven hits, all singles, in the first inning of the opener before rolling to the 10-1 victory.

The Bearcats were one out away from a shutout when St. Andrews scored its lone run on an error. After junior Matt Adams (Laurinburg, N.C.) and freshman Daniel Oliver (Plymouth, N.C.) drew back-to-back walks, freshman Jeff Brothers (East Sparta, Ohio) reached on a fielding error by the shortstop that scored Adams.

The Knights were held to just four singles by Axelsen, Brothers, sophomore Ethan Powell (Greenville, N.C.), and freshman Adrian Rivera (Staten Island, N.Y.).

Darren Tew picked up the win on the mound for Lander, tossing six scoreless innings in the start with six strikeouts. Junior counterpart Jack Crawford (Montgomery, N.Y.) took the loss allowing six runs on 11 hits in his first start for the Royal Blue & White. Sophomore James Shahayda (Virginia Beach, Va.) hurled 2 2/3 innings of scoreless relief for SAPC with a team-high four strikeouts.

Lanier was 4-for-4 with a sacrifice fly while Hernandez drove in a game-high three runs including a two-run homer over the left field fence in the second.

GAME TWO: Lander 12, St. Andrews 4
Box Score; Play-By-Play

Axelsen’s first home run of his senior season, a solo shot to left, cut the Knights deficit to 4-2 in the sixth inning of the nightcap but the Bearcats scored eight more runs in the bottom of the sixth and seventh to pull away for the 12-4 win.

After Lander started the scoring with one run in the first, St. Andrews knotted the score at 1-1 in the top of the second. Axelsen led off with a single to right and then stole second before scoring later in the frame on an RBI-fielder’s choice by sophomore Michael Ficarro (Pine City, N.C.).

Senior starter David Carbonell (St. Charles, Ill.) kept SAPC in the game allowing four runs (three earned) over 5.0 innings. Carbonell took the loss but had an encouraging eight strikeouts in his first career start for the Knights.

The hosts took control in the sixth innings sending 11 Bearcats batters to the plate that resulted in five runs. Hernandez and Robert Skinner accounted for half of Lander’s 12 hits with three base knocks apiece. Herandez finished with five RBI while Skinner rounded the bases four times.

Ross Davis (1-0) was the winning pitcher for LU, pitching five solid innings allowing one runo on three hits while striking out four.

After an unearned run in the eighth, St. Andrews scored its last run in the ninth on an RBI-single by Powell.

Axelsen and junior Michael Cantwell (Burlington, N.J.) both went 2-for-4. Axelsen, Rivera, and Powell all had hits in both games for SAPC.

NOTE:Special thanks to Lander Sports Information for contributing portions of the release.