Written by Mahaley Wise

Monday night’s game against the Thunderbolts and Grays was an electrifying demonstration of power hits, intense inning pitchers duels, and missed opportunities. The Grays jumped out to an early lead, leaving the Thunderbolts behind as they struggled to close the gap. Ultimately, the Grays would walk away with a 12-5 victory as the Thunderbolts left too many men on base to mount a comeback. 

In the third inning, Tanner Wolpert (Franklin and Marshall) advanced to first on a single for the Grays, moving Andy Rivera (Holy Family) to third to set up a scoring opportunity. Tyler Wiltsey (Rutgers) followed with another single to score Wolpert and get the first run of the game, putting the Grays ahead. Marc Quarrie (Wofford College) delivered a powerful triple to right-center, clearing the bases and adding three more runs. Sam Moseman (NYU) capped off the explosive inning with a single that brought Quarrie home, giving the Grays a 5-0 lead and taking advantage of the Thunderbolts’ early struggles. 

The Grays continued the momentum in the fourth inning as Wolpert and Witsley both hit their second back-to-back singles of the night. Andy Rivera was hit by a pitch to load the bases. A triple by Ryan Soong (WashU) cleared the bases for the Grays again and put them further out of the Thunderbolts offensive reach. Quarrie came back to bat, hitting a double to send Soong home and make it a four-run inning for the Grays and a 9-0 lead.

The Thunderbolts came to life in the fifth inning with a three-run homer by Brady Grimes (Millersville). Aidan Driscoll (Maryland) got on base with a fielder’s choice, and an error allowed Nolan Kutney (UMBC) to reach first while Driscoll advanced to third. Then came Brady Grimes’ moonshot that sent the runners prancing around the bases. However the Thunderbolts still trailed by six runs, 9-3. 

The Grays answered the Thunderbolts’ three-run inning with one of their own, reclaiming all the lost runs. A shaky Thunderbolts defense allowed TJ Addonizio (University of Richmond) and Andy Rivera to reach base on two errors. Wiltsey followed with his third single of the night to load the bases for the Grays. Noel Rivera (Marist) worked a walk to push the runners around, scoring another run for the Grays. A sacrifice fly to center field by Soong scored Andy Rivera for the second run of the inning. A wild pitch brought Wiltsey home, making it 12-3. 

Three walks issued by the Grays pitcher loaded the bases for the Thunderbolts in the seventh, setting up a prime scoring chance to save the game. Jack McCarthy (Marymount) stepped up and singled home Tyson Gil (Clarion), though that would be the only run in the intense inning.

The Thunderbolts once again showed a spark on the bases in the eighth, but fell short of maximizing the opportunity, leaving two runners stranded. Josh Erd (Frederick CC) got things started with a leadoff walk, followed by back-to-back singles from Gill and Driscoll to load the bases. A sacrifice fly from Brayden Foster (Youngstown State) brought in the inning’s lone run, making it 12-5. 

The Grays opened and closed the game with impressive defense and powerful hitting, dominating the Thunderbolts throughout. Andrew Ruggeri (Penn) threw a scoreless ninth to finish off the win for D.C.