The Butler men’s baseball team picked up its second consecutive victory last night, defeating IPFW, 8-3.
Senior third baseman Grant Fillipitch went 3-for-4 with a double and two RBIs for the Bulldogs (2-3), while senior second baseman Luke Duncan added two RBIs.
Butler got the offense going early against the Mastadons (0-1), scoring three runs in both the second and third innings.
Junior Mike Hernandez picked up the win for the Bulldogs, who had eight pitchers see action in the game.
The Bulldogs picked up their first win of the season against South Carolina-Upstate on Sunday, topping the Spartans (4-4), 10-9.
Fillipitch finished the day a triple short of hitting for the cycle, going 3-for-4 with a home run and an RBI.
Senior designated hitter Kyle Waggoner also had a strong day, going 3-for-5 with two RBIs. He was named Horizon League Player of the Week for hitting .412 and tallying seven RBIs during the road trip.
“Our hitters really broke out today and did a nice job,” head coach Steve Farley said. “After losing a tough game to Gardner-Webb, I wasn’t sure how the guys would bounce back.”
With the game tied at 8 going into the ninth, Butler played some small ball to produce the go-ahead run.
Freshman Zach Sizemore walked to open the frame and, after a sacrifice bunt and a passed ball, scored on a sacrifice fly from Waggoner to put the Bulldogs up, 9-8.
Butler added another run before the inning ended courtesy of an RBI single by junior shortstop Griffin Richeson.
Sophomore Chase Byerly held off a comeback by Upstate in the bottom of the inning and picked up his first save of the season.
Sophomore Joel Leichty picked up the win in relief for Butler.
The day before the win, Butler dropped both ends of a doubleheader against Gardner-Webb.
The second of the two games was a close affair, and, although the Bulldogs led for six innings, the Runnin’ Bulldogs (6-3) pulled out a 6-5 victory.
Butler used a strong second inning to take an early 4-0 lead.
Down 5-1 in the seventh, Gardner-Webb tied the contest, led by junior rightfielder Adam McFarland’s two RBIs.
In the bottom of the ninth, freshman third baseman Scott Coleman scored the game-winning run for the Runnin’ Bulldogs on a wild pitch.
The first game of the doubleheader wasn’t as competitive, as Butler fell behind early and dropped an 11-4 decision.
The Bulldogs opened their season on Friday with a 10-2 loss to Wofford (6-2).
Butler now heads to Oakland to take on the Golden Grizzlies (0-3) in back-to-back doubleheaders Saturday and Sunday.
