Baseball | 3/18/2018 7:17:00 PM

Box Score 1 | Box Score 2

    WISE, Va. – The West Liberty University baseball team opened its Mountain East Conference slate on Sunday by pounding out 24 hits in a doubleheader sweep of UVa-Wise at Stallard Field.
    Coach Eric Burkle's Hilltoppers (4-5, 2-0) powered their way to a 10-6 win in the opener and then rallied past the Cavaliers (3-12, 0-2) by an 11-6 count in the finale.
    In the first game, West Liberty broke up a tight contest with a seven-run outburst in the top of the fifth to put the game out of reach.
    Bub Haddox drove in three runs with a home run and a single while Tyler Ramsay picked up two RBIs with a single and a circuit blast. Coby Eckstein drove in two runs with double and a single while Chad Matthus stroked out two singles and Ethan Estes added an RBI base knock.
    Justin Retzer pitched the first five innings for the win, allowing just two runs on three hits while striking out three and walking two. The hosts scored four runs in the bottom of the seventh to make the final margin more respectable.
    The Hilltoppers found themselves on the short end of a 4-2 count heading into the fifth inning of the second game but back-to-back four-run uprisings in the fifth and sixth frames enabled the Black and Gold to finish off the sweep.
    Estes had a monster game at the plate, blasting three doubles to drive in three Hilltopper runs and scoring four more himself. Justice Jackson also had three hits, including a pair of doubles, and scored three runs while Eckstein once again drove in two runs with a double and a single.
    Haddox blasted another home run with Hunter Westlake and Colton Coss each chipping in with RBI singles. Logan Grimm got the win with 3.1 innings of solid relief.
    West Liberty will try to carry that momentum into Monday when the Hilltoppers travel to Concord for a 1 p.m. twinbill.
  West Liberty                               100 270 0 - 10  11  1
UVa-Wise                                     000 200 4 -   6     5  2
     WLU: Retzer wp (3SO, 2W), Stocklask (6) (2SO, 4W), Shook (7) (1SO, 0W) and Davis. V.Haddox HR, S, 3rbi; Ramsay HR, D, 2rbi; Eckstein D, S, 2rbi; Matthus 2S; Estes S, rbi
     UVW: Nevill lp (5SO, 3W), Larkin (5) (0SO, 0W), Naff (5) (0SO, 1W) and Blaum. Cagle HR, S, 2rbi; Branham S, rbi; Blaum S, rbi; Meador S, rbi
  West Liberty                               200 044 1 - 11  13  0
UVa-Wise                                     004 002 0 -   6    7  5
     WLU: Marcus (4SO, 3W), Grimm wp (3) (4SO, 1W) and Cooley, Harper (5). Estes 3D, 3rbi; Jackson 2D, S; Eckstein D, S, 2rbi; V.Haddox HR, rbi; Westlake S, rbi; Coss S, rbi
     UVW: Duncan lp  (4SO, 4W), Balmer (6) (2SO, 0W), Wertz (7) (1SO, 1W) and Bailey. Branham 2S, rbi; Yates 2S; Meador HR, 4rbi; Smith HR, rbi; Bailey D