Matthew Johnson

WOOSTER, Ohio – The College of Wooster wrapped up the North Coast Athletic Conference East Division title for the 10th consecutive year on Sunday by completing a weekend sweep of Hiram College with 18-4 and 5-1 wins, the second game being called during the bottom of the sixth inning due to inclement weather at Art Murray Field.

With the divisional crown, Wooster (31-7, 13-3 NCAC East) will be one of the top seeds at this week's NCAC Tournament and will play the second-place team from the other division, Wabash College (18-21, 9-7 NCAC West), in a match-up scheduled for Thursday, April 29, at Chillicothe, Ohio.

Saturday's opener witnessed the Fighting Scots putting up 14 runs on the board over the first four innings, as it quickly became a laugher. Tied 1-1 going into the bottom of the second, Wooster loaded the bases with one out and Stu Beath took a hit by pitch to bring home one run. Matt Groezinger added a sacrifice fly for another tally and then the floodgates opened up with back-to-back-to-back RBI singles, the third of which saw Chris Wood plate two to make it 7-1.

During the third, Beath contributed a sacrifice fly, followed by consecutive run-scoring doubles from Groezinger and Greg Van Horn. Zack Vesco also got into the act with an RBI single, pushing the lead out to 11-1.

Beath continued his big game with a three-run blast in the fourth inning, as his fourth homer this spring gave the Scots a 14-1 cushion and upped his RBI total to five for the game. They freely substituted the rest of the way.

On the mound, Scot starter Matt Barnes notched the win (5-2). He pitched the first five innings, allowing just one run in the second and three hits overall, and he struck out eight.

The first game finished right before lightning was spotted in the area, resulting in a delay for the start of the nightcap. Once it got underway, Wooster picked up right where it left off by scoring four in the first inning, thanks to a two-run home run by Luke Sutton and Stu Beath's solo blast that cleared the scoreboard in right field. Greg Van Horn also doubled, stole third, and scored on Michael Wellstead's infield single.

Matthew Johnson led off the second with a solo homer to straightaway center, part of a "perfect day" for the senior second baseman as he did not record an out in seven plate appearances.

That would be all of the Scots' scoring and the only drama left was whether the game would be completed or not due to threat

It was delayed once in the top of the fifth by lightning, two outs from being an official game. The two teams took the field again about 30 minutes later and played about another inning and one-half before heavy rains came down to end the day.

Tyler Fugate picked up the game-two victory (6-1). The only run that came in was unearned, as he yielded just three hits and struck out six.

Offensively, Johnson went 5-for-5 with six runs scored, a double, a triple, a home run, and two hit by pitches over the two games. Additional offensive stars included Sutton (4-for-6 with three RBI), Van Horn (4-for-6 with two RBI), and Wellstead (3-for-5 with an RBI).

A complete schedule for the NCAC Tournament is expected to be announced Monday.