WEST CHESTER, Pa.- In search of its fifth consecutive Bill Giles Invitational Championship, the No. 9/20/22 West Chester University baseball team (23-5) returned to action on Monday afternoon against Chestnut Hill (14-13) in a rare Monday non-conference game at Serpico Stadium. West Chester started quickly with a program-record 15-run first inning to jump out to an early 15-0 lead and never looked back in a dominant 21-7 victory over Chestnut Hill.
AJ DiAddezio (Phoenixville, Pa./Pope John Paul II) played a major role in the dominant victory as the freshman shortstop was 4-for-6 at the plate with two runs scored and five RBI, including a solo home run and RBI single in the first as West Chester batted around twice, along with a two-RBI single in the third and a two-RBI double in the eighth.
After a scoreless top of the first by
Ryan DeHaven (Perkasie, Pa./Pennridge), West Chester went to work in the home half of the first, taking an early 3-0 lead on a three-home run by
Drew Simpson (Hockessin, Del./DMA) after a leadoff triple by
Carter Rust (Liberty Township, Ohio/Lakota West) to begin the game. These two early hits were two of 12 hits for the Golden Rams in a dominant first-inning performance as the team crossed the plate 15 times, breaking the program record of 12 runs, which had been set in 1992 (4/7/92) in a 42-1 victory over Philadelphia University (now Jefferson).
Patrick Gozdan (Warminster, Pa./Archbishop Wood) and
DiAddezio both homered in the first inning, while
Christian Michak (Kingston, Pa./Wyoming Valley West) picked up a pair of RBI singles.
Hunter Smith (Martinsburg, Pa./Central) doubled home a run, while Simpson and Gozdan both added RBI doubles, along with an RBI single by DiAddezio for the final run of the first inning.
DiAddezio singled home another run in the third before
Austin Stalker (Wycombe, Pa./Council Rock North) blasted a two-run shot to right in the fourth to give West Chester an 18-0 lead. Chestnut Hill scored seven unanswered runs in the fifth and sixth before West Chester added three more runs to its lead in the eighth with a two-RBI double by DiAddezio for his fourth hit and fifth RBI of the day, before
Luke Raho (Johnstown, Pa./Richland) doubled him home for his second run of the afternoon.
In addition to the tremendous output by DiAddezio, Simpson was 4-for-5 with four RBI and three runs, along with Michak, who was 4-for-4 with three runs and a pair of RBI. Smith, Rust, Stalker, and Gozdan all recorded multi-hit afternoons as well, with two hits each, while Gozdan tied for second on the team in RBI with four, matching Simpson's effort.
DeHaven earned his first win of the season with 4.2 strong innings of work, allowing four runs on six hits, while striking out seven.
Evan Wineburg (Norristown, Pa./Archbishop Carroll), Trey Stricker (Reading, Pa./Berks Catholic), Nick Cugino (West Chester, Pa./Henderson), Nick Parrotto (Mars, Pa./Seneca Valley), and
Patrick Taney (Cherry Hill, N.J./Cherry Hill West) all appeared in relief, with Taney working a bullpen-best two scoreless innings with three strikeouts to finish off the victory.
For Chestnut Hill, junior Jackson Shollenberger took the loss as he allowed six runs (five earned) on four hits and a walk in just a third of an inning before Alexander Matlack finished the first but before allowing nine runs (two earned) on eight hits, while striking out one. Mason Adkins and Dylan Broderick were two bright spots out of the pen for Chestnut Hill, pitching two innings each as Adkins allowed one run on five hits in his 2.0 innings of work (the second and third), while Broderick worked a scoreless sixth and seventh, allowing just two hits, while striking out one.
Kenyon Motley, who had a difficult start to his day in the field with three errors in the first inning, finished his day 2-for-5 at the plate with a pair of runs scored and a pair of RBI. Matthew Sharkey, Nicholas Shiffler, and Ryan McNichol all picked up two hits as well in the loss, with McNichol, Motley, and Sharkey driving in two runs each for the Griffins.
The Golden Rams 21 runs on 25 hits is the team's best offensive output since the team scored 21 runs against Adelphi in a midweek clash on April 9, 2024. The Golden Rams 25 hits are the most in a single game since the team recorded 28 in a 32-3 win over Salem on April 1, 2023.
Up Next
West Chester will be back in action on Friday at home against Shippensburg, beginning at 1 p.m., before visiting the Raiders on Saturday for the final two games of the season series.
