JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Dartmouth concluded its seven-game spring trip on Wednesday evening at Jacksonville's John Sessions Stadium, dropping a 15-4 decision to the Dolphins. The game concluded after the top of the seventh due to the 10-run rule.
Kris Armstrong cranked two home runs and drove in five runs for Jacksonville (15-8) to support the 10-strikeout performance of Scout Updike, who improved to 2-0 with his six-inning start. The Big Green (1-13) could only muster four hits, two of which were doubles by seniors
Connor Bertsch and
Peter O'Toole, as they suffered their sixth straight defeat.
The two sides traded runs in the first as Bertsch doubled home the game's first run and Armstrong countered with a sacrifice fly in the bottom half. Three Dolphin singles in the second gave Jacksonville a 2-1 lead, only to have the Big Green tie the game in the third on a walk and an error followed by a sacrifice fly off the bat of
Tyler Robinson.
The Dolphins quickly took back the lead in their half of the third when Armstrong cranked his first home run of the night to lead off the inning. Although Dartmouth hurler
Brady Chappell (0-1) retired the next two hitters, the third out was harder to come by as he walked the next two before being relieved by
Jeff Lee. Each of the first two batters drew base on balls to force in a run before Chase Malloy and Elias Flowers rapped out RBI singles to make it a 6-2 game.
Freshman reliever
Aidan Plummer kept the Dolphins off the board in the fourth, but the dam broke open in the fifth on a two-run single, two sacrifice flies and two RBI doubles. And when Armstrong belted his 10th home run of the season in the sixth, a three-run line drive to right, Jacksonville owned a 15-2 advantage.
In the seventh, the Big Green threatened to extend the game after the first two hitters were retired by reliever Heston Mosley. But three straight pinch hitters reached base —
Ryan Schwartz singled,
Milo Suarez walked and Nico Bañez was hit by a pitch — before O'Toole, another pinch hitter, sent a 2-1 pitch over the left fielder's head for a two-run double. The rally was ended on a fielder's choice, however, ending the game.
Dartmouth will begin Ivy League play this weekend with a three-game series at Princeton beginning on Friday at 2:30 p.m. All three games will be streamed live on ESPN+ with live stats available on the official website of Dartmouth Athletics, DartmouthSports.com.
Notes: Dartmouth has not played at Princeton in seven years … junior
Tyler Cox extended his hit streak to seven games and has reached base in each of the last 11 contests, not to mention 44 of his last 45 games dating back to last year … the 1-13 start to the season is the slowest for the Big Green since the 1992 squad was 1-15.