Williamsburg, V.A.- The Elon Phoenix (23-11, 12-4 CAA) bounced back against the William & Mary Tribe (23-13, 8-6 CAA) in game two of the weekend series with a shutout performance. The Phoenix earned their 12^th CAA win in the 8-0 victory, and for the sixth time in conference play Elon's pitching staff has allowed just one run or less.  
 
Adam Berry was inserted into the starting lineup and swung the bat well. Berry finished his day 2-for-4 and blew the game open in the fifth inning when he slammed a hanging slider over the right field wall bringing in three runs with one swing of the bat.
 
Shea Sprague had a career day on the mound for the Phoenix. The sophomore threw seven innings allowing just six hits and set a career mark for strikeouts in a game with nine. Spencer Bauer in his two innings of relief allowed no hits and struck out two William & Mary batters.  
 
Elon still holds the first-place spot in the CAA standings with a game lead over UNCW and a 1.5 game lead over the College of Charleston.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Elon began the afternoon by putting two men on in the top of the first following walks from Cole Reynolds and Luke Stephenson, but the Phoenix could not bring either home.
• Shea Sprague surrendered back-to-back singles to lead off the bottom of the second, but Elon's southpaw showed grit on the mound. Following a sacrifice bunt to advance the runners 90 feet, Cole Ragone laced one off the foot of Shea Sprague, but Sprague would react quickly and throw Tank Yaghoubi out at the plate. The lefty would then pickoff Ragone at first base before the runner from third could cross the plate, getting Elon out of the jam.
• The Phoenix would respond in the following frame with the first run of the ballgame. A leadoff single from Charlie Granatell and a sacrifice bunt from Kenny Mallory Jr. would put Granatell in scoring position. Following a walk from Ryan Sprock, Luke Stephenson would step to the plate with two outs and deliver an RBI single back up the middle to score Charlie Granatell.
• Elon would get more runs in the top of the fifth to extend their lead. Kenny Mallory Jr. and Cole Reynolds would get the offense going with singles to start the inning. Once again, with two outs, Tanner Holliman would deliver a single to right center field scoring Mallory Jr. and giving Elon a 2-0 advantage.
• Adam Berry would do one better, taking the first pitch he saw and blasting it over the right center field wall to give the Phoenix a four-run inning and a 5-0 lead.
• Shea Sprague would continue to settle in retiring five straight Tribe batters. William & Mary would put two runners on again, but a strikeout from Sprague and a diving catch by Connor Coolahan at third base would leave another zero in the scorebook for the Tribe in the bottom of the sixth.
• The seventh inning would go quickly for both squads as the pitching would produce consecutive three-up, three-down frames.
• The Phoenix would blow the game open in the top of the ninth. Elon would load the bases for Parker Haskin who replaced Luke Stephenson in the field. Haskin would work a full count then lace a line drive to deep right field scoring James Broderick, Mallory Jr. and Cole Reynolds all the way from first to give the Phoenix a 8-0 lead.
• Spencer Bauer would strike out the final batter on three pitches to give the Phoenix their first shutout win since their third game with Delaware this season on March 26.

NOTES AND STATS

• With the win on Saturday, Elon claimed its first regular season win over William & Mary since April 11, 2021, when the Phoenix beat the Tribe 8-0 in Elon. These last two wins over the Tribe are the only two shutouts the Phoenix have had in 40 career games with William & Mary.  
• Cole Reynolds extended his on base streak to 27 consecutive games on base in the first inning of Saturday's game. This is the fifth highest total for a Phoenix batter in the last five seasons.  
• Adam Berry launched his first Phoenix home run against William & Mary on Saturday. The blast also brought home three runs, putting Berry's RBI total at five.
• Ryan Sprock extended his on base streak to 13 straight games with two walks during Saturday's game. This is tied for the second longest current streak on the team along with Charlie Granatell.
• Luke Stephenson extended his hitting streak to ten straight games, placing second on the Phoenix for the longest streak this season behind Ryan Sprock.
• Parker Haskin picked up his first hit for the Phoenix since he knocked one against Monmouth back in mid-March. The three RBI are the most for Haskin since he knocked in four against UNCG last season.
• Shea Sprague has one of his finest performances as a Phoenix. The 2022 Rookie of the Year in the CAA threw seven great innings and struck out a career high nine batters. His previous high for punchouts was seven earlier this season against Quinnipiac.
• Elon lowered their ERA in conference play to 2.71 almost a full point ahead of second place. The Phoenix also claims the conference's top spot in strikeouts during conference play as well as the fewest walks.
• Phoenix pitching has struck out 26 William & Mary hitters in the first two games of this series while surrendering just five total walks.   
• This was the second shutout for the Phoenix during conference play and is the sixth outing where Elon has allowed one run or less.

 
UP NEXT
 

• The Phoenix and Tribe will meet in a rubber match on Sunday afternoon at Plumeri Park. First pitch time for Sunday's game will be 1 p.m.