GREENSBORO, N.C. – Elon University baseball opened its 2021 season with a 7-4 win at UNC Greensboro on Friday, Feb. 19 at UNCG Baseball Stadium.
 
"I thought we played really good baseball for five innings," said head coach Mike Kennedy "What I did like when we tried to give it away is that we had guys step up and compete in some tough spots." 

ON THE MOUND
Jared Wetherbee (1-0) earned the win after holding the Spartans (0-1) to just one run through 4.0 complete innings of work. The left hander tallied five strikeouts and allowed three hits and four walks. Joe Sprake pitched the bottom of the ninth and secured the the save after collecting two punchouts with one hit given up. The Phoenix also used pitchers Tristan Corcoran, Ian Evans and Trevor Kirk.

AT THE PLATE
Anthony Galason finished 2-for-5 as the Colts Neck, N.J. native doubled twice, drove in three runs and scored another. Alex Iadisernia hit 2-for-3 with two runs, two walks and an RBI. Tyler Cranston scored once and added an RBI in a 2-for-3 outing, and Garrett Stonehouse went 2-for-5 with a run and an RBI.

THE RUNDOWN
The Phoenix (1-0) built an early 6-1 lead after scoring two runs in the second, third and fourth innings. Stonehouse led off the second with a single to short, then advanced to second on a wild pitch. After Adam Spurlin drew a walk, Matt Oldham singled through the right side of the UNCG defense to plate the first run of the game. Cranston then laid down the sacrifice bunt as Spurlin scored from third on the play.

Iadisernia worked a 3-2 count to lead off the top of the third with a walk. Galason followed with a double to left to make it 3-0, then came around on a Stonehouse single up the middle. After UNCG plated a run with a bases-loaded sacrifice fly in the bottom half of the third, Elon responded with two more runs in the fourth. Jarrett Pico reached on a fielder's choice and took second on a wild pitch. Iadisernia then walked and Galason found the gap in right for a two-out, two-RBI double.

Both teams traded runs in the sixth. Cranston singled to right and stole second, with an errant throw by the Spartan catcher allowing him to advance to third. After Pico was hit by a pitch, Cranston touched home as Iadisernia was too fast for UNCG to turn the double play. The Spartans answered in their next turn at bat as a two-out single through the right side scored a runner from second.

The hosts closed the gap at 7-4 with two runs in the bottom of the seventh. Elon looked to get out of the inning unscathed as Evans induced a fly ball to the gap in right with two outs and runners on the corners. Cranston could not make the catch, however, and the two runners crossed the plate on the fielding error. UNCG got aggressive in the home half of the eighth. With two outs and the bases loaded, the Spartans attempted to steal home. Parker Haskin was able to flip the ball to Kirk, who applied the tag in time to keep it 7-4. In the ninth, Sprake induced a leadoff pop up to short and sent the next batter back to the dugout on a called third strike. The next Spartan tripled to center, but was left stranded as Sprake got the batter to chase a 1-2 offering.

NOTES
-Elon extends its lead in the all-time series to 37-21 overall and 18-15 when playing in Greensboro.
-The Phoenix wins its season opener for the third year in a row.
-Galason's two doubles are the most by an Elon hitter since May 24, 2019 when Elon defeated Northeastern 8-6 at the CAA Championship. Alum Cam Devanney drove in three runs, belted a two-run home run and added a pair of doubles.
-The game marked the collegiate debuts for Corcoran, Connor Offshack and Cole Reynolds. Corcoran allowed one earned run, walked a pair and struck out one in 1.2 innings. Offshack pinch hit for Oldham in the seventh, and Reynolds took over at first in the bottom of the ninth.

UP NEXT
The Phoenix returns to Greensboro tomorrow, Feb. 20 for Game Two in the weekend series. First pitch is scheduled for 2 p.m.