NEWS

Aidan Rice at bat earlier this season. (News of Davidson photo)

FAIRFAX, Va. — Shutdown pitching and a late five-run rally highlighted the Davidson baseball team's doubleheader sweep at George Mason Saturday.

The Wildcats earned their second straight Atlantic 10 series win, after also taking two of three games against Dayton last weekend.

Now 14-15 overall, the Wildcats are 6-6 in league play through four of 10 series.

Game 1
The Wildcats struck early, and pitchers Cooper Cavanaugh and Simon Yochum combined for a four-hit shutout in a 4-0, series-evening victory.

Lefty starter Cavanaugh threw a career-high seven innings and struck out eight, while allowing two hits. He had 1-2-3 innings in the second, third and fifth. Yochum took over from there and pitched the final two frames, allowing two hits and striking out two. It's the third shutout of the season for the Wildcats, who also earned them against Fairfield (Feb. 20) and Lehigh (March 8). 

Davidson took a 3-0 lead in the second thanks to RBI-singles from Theo Loughlin and Aidan Rice. Loughlin then scored on a Fredy Diaz sacrifice bunt.

In the fourth, Jamie Daly hit his fourth home run of the season and his second of the series.

Game 2
Trailing most of the way, the Wildcats scored five runs in the ninth inning to earn a 7-4 series-clinching win.

In the ninth, after Daly drew a bases-loaded RBI-walk to get the Wildcats within a run, Anthony Torreso provided the go-ahead hit with a bases-clearing triple. Forrest Lietz's RBI-single then gave the Wildcats more of a cushion.

Though the Patriots (15-14, 8-4) led from the second inning on, it was the Wildcats who struck first when Matt Manjooran drove in two with a first-inning single.

Reliever Carson Taggart entered in the fourth and kept the Patriots quiet and the game within reach. He tossed 4.1 innings, allowed just one hit and struck out two while getting the win, his first.

Will Marenghi pitched a 1-2-3 ninth to secure his first save.