ELIZABETHTOWN, Pa. --- Freshman outfielder Mike Mittl connected on the first two home runs of his career, and he drove in six runs to help lead the Moravian College baseball team to an 11-8 Landmark Conference win at Elizabethtown College Sunday afternoon as the Greyhounds won the weekend series, 2-1.
Mittl was 3-for-5 in the game as the Hounds pounded out 16 hits while freshman second baseman Tim Heard led Moravian at the plate with a 4-for-5 game. Freshman outfielder Austin Markowski was 2-for-4 with a homer while junior outfielder Anthony Gaetaniello and senior first baseman Charles Savite were both 2-for-5.
Senior Anthony Zaloga improved to 3-0 on the mound this season as he allowed four runs, just one earned, on six hits and two walks to go with four strikeouts in 6.2 innings of action. Sophomore Adam Howard tossed an inning with four runs on three hits and a walk while sophomore Nicholas Mazzella gave up a hit in a third of an inning. Sophomore Dan Morrin worked a 1-2-3 ninth inning with one strikeout for his first collegiate save.
Mittl got the Greyhounds, now 12-11 overall and 6-3 in Landmark Conference action, on the scoreboard early as he connected on a one-out solo homer in the top of the first inning, his first collegiate home run. Moravian would extend that lead to 4-0 with three runs in the top of the third inning on an RBI ground out by Mittl and a two-run homer off of Markowski's bat, his fourth home run of the spring.
The Hounds pushed the lead to 5-0 in the top of the fifth inning when Gaetaniello led off with a double and scored on an RBI single by senior third baseman Alex Bull. The Blue Jays countered with three runs in the bottom half of the fifth to cut the Blue and Grey's lead to 5-3.
Moravian answered back in the top of the sixth for two more runs to push the lead to 7-3 as Mittl hit a two-RBI double down the left field line.
Both teams scored a run in the seventh inning with senior catcher Mike Roethke connecting on an RBI single for the Greyhounds' run.
Moravian added another three runs in the top of the eighth frame to push the lead to 11-4. Gaetaniello singled with one out and scored on a two-run homer to left field by Mittl, and Savite would add an RBI single later in the inning to score Markowski. Elizabethtown plated four runs in the bottom of the eighth before the Hounds closed the door.
The Greyhounds are scheduled to return to action on Thursday, April 7 in a non-conference game versus Keystone College beginning at 4:00 p.m. at Gillespie Field.
