Wroth’s big day anchors C-N to split with Northwood
February 16, 2019

Wroth’s big day anchors C-N to split with Northwood

JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Michael Wroth went 5-for-8 at the plate with seven RBIs and two runs including his second grand slam of the season as Carson-Newman lost the first game to Northwood 9-4 before rebounding to take game two 10-6 Saturday at the Silver Diamond Baseball Complex.

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VIDEO: Michael Wroth Interview

JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Michael Wroth went 5-for-8 at the plate with seven RBIs and two runs including his second grand slam of the season as Carson-Newman lost the first game to Northwood 9-4 before rebounding to take game two 10-6 Saturday at the Silver Diamond Baseball Complex.

"I have been trusting the process and keeping it simple at the plate," Wroth said. "Balls are falling now and I am having some success. We came out ready to play in that second game."

The win for the Timberwolves in the first game snapped the longest winning streak in two years for Carson-Newman (10-2) and stopped the program's best start at home since 2002 for the first loss in the seventh home game of the year.

"All coaches have to say that you need to move onto the next game," Carson-Newman coach Tom Griffin said. "If we are going to talk about next pitch and process versus results, then you have to put that stuff behind you. Our guys did a good job of that."

With the win the second game, the Eagles ensure that Northwood (1-2) will not win back-to-back games for the first time in this series as C-N holds a 9-4 lead through 13 meetings.

The Eagles were outhit 20-17 on the day between the two games stranding 16 men on base but nine of the team's 12 RBIs came with two outs.

GAME ONE: NORTHWOOD 9, Carson-Newman 4 (7 Innings)

Northwood wasted no time getting on the scoreboard as a single and walk were sandwiched around a strikeout in the top of the first. Colin McClelland turned on the first pitch driving it out of the park to left field to get a three-run lead before the Eagles stepped to the dish.

With two on and two outs in the top of the second, David Vinsky lined a base hit into left field to score Jacob Rybicki stretching the margin to 4-0.

Leading off the bottom of the second inning, Michael Wroth (Chicopee, Mass.) blasted a 1-2 pitch to straightaway center field that left the yard to get the Eagles on the board.

A single and a double started the bottom of the third inning but a pop up and a strikeout brought Wroth to the dish with two in scoring position. The junior singled to left-center field bringing home the pair to cut the margin to one at 4-3.

The Timberwolves struck for three in the fifth to expand the differential to four runs at 7-3 doing it all with two outs. Kyle Ziegler doubled to center field plating a run and scored on a two-run dinger to center field by Travis Janes.

Ethan Goforth (Blacksburg, Va.) delivered a two-out RBI single in the bottom of the sixth inning to pull the Eagles within three at 7-4 but it was the closest C-N would get the rest of the way.

A base hit to right-center field by Ziegler and a passed ball provided more run support for the Timberwolves in the seventh getting to the final score of 9-4.

Wroth went 3-for-4 with three RBIs and Tyler Thompson (Gallatin, Tenn.) added a pair of hits. All four pitchers used by Griffin in the game allowed at least run but Nick Adkins (Knoxville, Tenn.) picked up five punch outs over the final 2 1/3 frames.

Each of the six, seven and eight batters had two hits with Ziegler and Janes driving in a pair from the seven and eight spots.

Max Bain picked up the victory on the bump with five innings of work striking out seven while yielding three earned runs on five hits and two walks.

GAME TWO: CARSON-NEWMAN 10, Northwood 6

Goforth opened the bottom of the first with a bunt single. Five pitches later on a 3-1 delivery, Malik Kyle (Jefferson City, Tenn.) hammered a pitch to straightaway center field that left the yard for his first homer of the season giving C-N a 2-0 edge.

The Eagles loaded the bases with two outs in the bottom of the third. Wroth ambushed the first pitch of his at-bat and clobbered it over the fence in right-center field for a grand slam, his second of the season.

Griffin's group played add on in the bottom of the fourth as Kyle drove an RBI triple to left field and scored on a wild pitch swelling the bulge to 8-0.

Northwood made a charge in the top of the fifth scoring six times to pull within two at 8-6. Back-to-back doubles from Ziegler and Conner Kin, the two-run variety opened the charge. Cole Brooks followed with a two-run blast and David Vinsky hit his third homer of the series to put a punctuate mark on a six-run frame.

An RBI double from Kyle in the sixth and a wild pitch to score Charlie Brown (Sevierville, Tenn.) in the seventh allowed C-N to get two runs back making it a 10-6 affair.

Greg Valentine (Knoxville, Tenn.) put out the flames in the fifth inning and pitched the final 4 2/3 innings to earn his fourth win of the season. The right-hander allowed one earned run on two hits striking out five on 61 pitches.

Kyle finished a single shy of the cycle going 3-for-4 with four RBIs and three runs scored while Wroth drove in four more on a pair of knocks.

Ziegler had three of the team's eight hits on the day as the only player with a multi-hit effort going 3-for-4. Zach Kregel was tabbed with the loss throwing four innings allowing eight runs, six earned on five hits and two walks.

The programs are slated to wrap up the series Sunday afternoon with a 1 p.m. first pitch scheduled for the Silver Diamond Baseball as the Eagle Sports Network will have the video and audio coverage.

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