MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. --- Junior second baseman Alex Longernecker and senior pitcher Chris Soltys of the Moravian College baseball team have been named to the D3baseball.com Team of the Week for their performances last week.
The duo helped the Greyhounds open their trip to the Snowbird Classic in Port Charlotte, Florida with a doubleheader sweep of Heidelberg (Ohio) University. Moravian won the opening game, 16-14 in 13 innings, tying the school record for the longest contest in program history, and the Hounds also had a school-best 63 at-bats in the game. The Greyhounds would take the nightcap, which ended close to midnight, 18-2.
Longernecker was 7-for-10 (.700) in the twinbill with two doubles, two triples, six runs scored and five RBIs. Longernecker, who was also selected as the Landmark Conference Player of the Week on Monday, tied the school record with a pair of triples in the opening game.
"We inserted Alex into the starting lineup Sunday for the first time this season, and he really stepped up to the opportunity," stated eighth-year Head Coach Paul Engelhardt. "Every time we needed a hit, it seemed like Alex was at the plate and delivered."
Soltys tossed the longest outing of his career in the opening game of the doubleheader, throwing the final 5.2 innings of relief to earn the victory. Soltys also recorded a career high eight strikeouts in just his fifth career appearance of five innings or more.
"Chris is our closer and came in with a one-run lead in the eighth," Engelhardt said. "Unfortunately, we couldn't hold that lead and with six more games in the next five days, we asked him to keep going out there so we had arms out of the bullpen all week. Chris had great control in the extra frames and gave us the chance to open the week here in Florida with a victory."
To view the entire D3baseball.com Team of the Week, visit http://www.d3baseball.com/awards/team-of-the-week/2014/week03.
The Greyhounds will have an off day on Wednesday, March 5 before getting back on the field at North Charlotte Regional Park on Thursday versus Adrian (Mich.) College at 12:00 p.m. Moravian will be looking for its second win of the week over the Bulldogs after defeating them 9-8 in 10 innings Monday night.
