Townsend Stevenson has thrown 13 strikeouts in his first three collegiate games. (Yiwen Zha | Student Life)

On paper, the Washington University and Illinois Wesleyan University (IWU) baseball teams looked evenly matched, as both teams had only suffered one loss leading up to their three-game series. While the Bears, who swept the Titans last season, appeared to have an advantage on their home field, their visitors quickly proved them wrong.

The Titans defeated the Bears 9-0 in the first game of the series before splitting the second two games. With the 1-2 record on the weekend, the Bears, who had started the season 5-1, fell to 6-3.

IWU set the tone early in game one on Saturday, March 2, with a first-inning home run and added another run in the second. Led by three-run outbursts in the fifth and ninth innings, the Titans piled on to their lead, and the Bears fell behind 9-0 going into the ninth. 

This large gap wouldn’t stop the Bears from attempting to mount a comeback. Sophomore pinch hitter Connor Lindsey hit a three-run triple, followed by sophomore Shane Pellegrino and senior Kaden Bernhard’s RBIs. However, the Bears comeback fizzled out with the score at 9-5 and the momentum in favor of the Bears. An unfortunate groundout ended the game with runners on second and third, handing the Bears their second consecutive loss. 

In the second game, WashU couldn’t get any momentum despite two scoreless innings from first-year pitcher Townsend Stevenson to begin the game. The Titans broke through against Stevenson in the third, hitting a three-run home run and double to take a 4-0 lead. It would soon get out of reach as the Titans put up three more runs in the next three innings to go ahead 7-0. This time, the Bears’ bats couldn’t get anything going and were held to only four hits and no runs throughout the game. 

After a rough Saturday doubleheader, Sunday gave the Bears a fresh start. WashU’s offense would seize this opportunity, catalyzed by junior outfielder Brandon Buday. Buday hit a two-run double to begin the scoring in the second inning and was hit in by Pellegrino for an early three-run lead. Buday’s double was the second of 16 hits, resulting in a 12-3 victory for the Bears. In what could only be described as a “hit parade,” WashU had six players record two hits or more, with senior Clayton Miller having four hits for 3 RBIs and Pellegrino recording two extra-base hits. Bernhard, junior catcher Braden Mazone and junior utility man Dax Braemer added two hits each.

Another huge part of the victory came from the mound as two pitchers, juniors Sebastian Guzman and Hank Weiss, combined to allow only three runs and six hits across all nine innings. Weiss had six strikeouts in the final four innings. 

The Bears will continue the momentum with a three-game set against the University of Chicago, with the first pitch happening at noon on March 9 at Kelley Field. Though Chicago competes in the University Athletic Association (UAA) alongside WashU in many sports, its baseball team plays in the Midwest Conference for baseball. The Bears will start their UAA season at the end of March.