The Mount Vernon Nazarene baseball team began the season with a 10-day, nine-game tune-up against Sunshine State schools as the Cougars ready themselves for Crossroad League play and the 2022 season, looking to improve upon their 34-22 mark of last year.
The Cougars began with two losses but picked up their first win of 2022 in convincing fashion with a 12-2 victory over Lyndon State on Feb. 23.
In the season opener on Feb. 21, MVNU fell to Bethel, 9-7. The Warriors had already played 14 games and were 13-1 coming in. They put up two early runs in the bottom of the second, but MVNU responded with three runs in the top half of the third, thanks to RBI from Casey Kalman and Jake Glover and a fielding error that scored Clay Cottle. The scoring went back and forth until Bethel padded its 7-6 lead with two in the bottom of the eighth. MVNU had a rally going in the ninth until a game-ending double play shut the door. Glover went 2-for-4 with a home run in the game.
On Feb. 22, Warner got the best of the Cougars, 7-2. Warner is 9-6 on the season, but MVNU struck first with a run in the second on a Kalman double, a wild pitch and a Devin Pearl groundout. The Cougars' only other run came in the top of the fourth. Cameron Miller singled to center and was pinch run for by Brady Wallace. Hunter Billman then doubled to right center, scoring Wallace. Miller was 2-for-4 with a double before departing. Warner put up two in the second, three in the third and two in the fourth to secure the win.
The next day, the Cougars regrouped and slugged their way to their first win of the year, 12-2 over Lyndon State. Kalman put MVNU on the board in the bottom of the first with a sacrifice fly to score Toby Walker from third. After a Lyndon State run to tie the game in the top of the fourth, MVNU came to life with eight runs in the bottom of the inning. Wallace got the scoring going with a double that scored Cooper Crawford. Next man up was Walker, who singled, scoring Wallace from second, and the rout was on. With a 9-1 lead after four, MVNU added three more insurance runs in the ballgame to secure the 12-2 victory.
Glover went six strong innings and got the win for the Cougars. Glover allowed just four hits and two runs (one earned) and struck out four. Austin Brown pitched two innings of relief, getting one strikeout in his time on the mound. Cruz McFadden struck out all three Lyndon batters in the ninth inning to finish off the game. Crawford went 2-for-4 with three RBI to lead the offense.
