PHILADELPHIA, Pa. – The No. 19 West Chester University baseball team fell 6-1 to Wilmington University in the championship of the 18th Annual Bill Giles Invitational on Tuesday afternoon inside Citizen Bank Park.
West Chester drops to 20-9 overall with the loss and Tuesday's defeat snaps the Golden Rams' streak of consecutive Bill Giles Invitational championships at three. Overall, WCU has won 12 titles in the tournament that features the four NCAA Division II baseball programs in the Philadelphia area (West Chester, University of the Sciences, Wilmington, and Jefferson) – giving West Chester the most of any team in the 18-year history of the event.
The Wildcats jump to 17-14 on the year following the victory over the Golden Rams and Tuesday's win gives WU its third Bill Giles Invitational championship overall and the first since the 2014 season.
Acting as the visitors in today's contest, Wilmington came out of the gate and tagged WCU starter
Michael Deitz (AVON GROVE, PA./AVON GROVE) for four runs in the top of the first frame to put the Wildcats in front 4-0 early on Tuesday afternoon. With Deitz settling in and the Wildcats switching pitchers after each inning, neither team was able to muster a hit through the next four frames and the game remained 4-0 entering the sixth.
Reliever
Nick Picariello (PHILADELPHIA, PA./GERMANTOWN) came into relief Deitz in the top of the sixth and freshman surrendered two runs (one earned) to the seven batters he faced to push the Wildcats' advantage to 6-0 heading into the bottom of the sixth.
West Chester's first run of the game came in the bottom of the seventh, as back-to-back singles by
Jared Melone (NORTH WALES, PA./NORTH PENN) and
Shane Dressler (YORK HAVEN, PA./RED LAND) landed two base runners on with no outs for the Golden Rams. With the bases loaded, pinch hitter
Franklin Ramirez (READING, PA./BERKS CATHOLIC) walked in Melone from third to bring the score to 6-1 – but West Chester would leave the bases juiced after a groundout ended the inning.
The Golden Rams added the final of their five hits in the bottom of the ninth, as
Zach Sheranko (TANNERSVILLE, PA./POCONO MOUNTAIN EAST) sent a single to left with one out and nobody on base. West Chester's day ended with a ground out and a fly out to left to seal the 6-1 defeat for the Golden Rams on Tuesday afternoon.
Melone went 2-for-4 with a double in the loss, while Martinez added the lone RBI for West Chester on Tuesday.
On the mound, Deitz (2-1) got the loss after allowing four runs (two earned) on six hits with three walks and five strikeouts in 5.0 innings pitched.
The Golden Rams will head to East Stroudsburg University tomorrow, April 18, to square off against the Warriors in a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) doubleheader starting at 1:00 p.m.
