Martin baffled the Illinois College squad, throwing only 65 pitches over seven innings to give Wabash its first shutout of the year. He faced only two batters over the limit, giving up a bloop single in the second. The other batter reached on a Wabash error in the fifth. Martin struck out five while earning his first win of the season. He picked up a save in his only other appearance on the mound this year.
The Little Giants struggled early at the plate before picking up three runs in the sixth inning and four more in the top of the seventh to support Martin’s pitching performance. Freshman Nick George (West Lafayette, IN/Harrison) led the Little Giants with a 3-for-3 performance at the plate. He added two runs to the Wabash totals and had the game-winning RBI in the second inning on a base hit to right field that scored sophomore Bill Goff (Brownsburg, IN/Brownsburg). Goff was one of three Little Giant players to added two hits to the Wabash effort. Sophomores Tyler Nance (Celebration, FL/Celebration) and Danny Schubert (Lebanon, IL/Lebanon) each had two hits.
Wabash used the long ball to win a two-run decision over New Jersey City University in the first contest on Sunday. Junior Mike Mack (Butler, IN/Eastside) slammed two home runs on the way to a 3-for-4 day. Mack hit a two-run shot in the fifth inning, then added a solo homer in the seventh to give the Little Giants a three-run cushion. Mack added a double and four runs scored to the Wabash totals.
Wabash took an 8-2 lead after three innings before the Knights responded with an eight-spot in their half of the third to take a two-run lead. The Little Giants responded with three runs in their portion of the fourth to take the lead for the rest of the game. Nance had three hits in addition to Mack’s three-hit game to lead Wabash to the victory. Sophomore Judd Crowgey (Salem, OH/Salem) scattered three hits over 2-1/3 innings of relief work to earn the win. Senior Marc Rowe (West Point, IN/McCutcheon) earned his second save of the season with the final two innings of work.
Wabash moves above the .500-mark with the two wins, improving to 4-3 for the year. The Little Giants will play a single game against Muskingum College at 9 a.m. on Monday as they continue their Florida trip.