Game Photos 1 I Game Photos 2

LEXINGTON, Va.- The VMI baseball team added two more wins to their record on another cold, windy Sunday at Patchin Field, as they completed Saturday's suspended game, a 5-4 win, before rallying in the seventh inning to win the final game of the weekend by an 8-7 margin. The Keydets are now off to the best start in the program's history at 8-3 and have won six straight contests overall. Lafayette fell to 0-3 after their season-opening series.

In a three-game series where each contest was decided by one run, it was the Keydets who were able to come up with the big hits and clutch pitches when they needed them most, in fighting off numerous solid performances by the Leopards. Key to VMI's success on the weekend was freshman hurler Travis Smink, who earned two saves and a win on the series, improving to 3-0 on the season. In the suspended contest, an RBI single by Kelly Sweppenhiser provided the difference, while in game three, it was a two-run double by B.T. Good that gave the Keydets the lead for good.

"This weekend we had three, well-played, exciting baseball games," said VMI head coach Marlin Ikenberry. "Lafayette played hard in all three and so did we. I'm extremely proud of how our team handled themselves in three tight games. We showed great composure offensively to come from behind all weekend, and I can't say enough about Smink's composure as a freshman. We didn't really want to use him in game three, but he said he felt great and wanted the ball. He did a great job, and kept getting better as the innings went on."

In the suspended game from Saturday, the Keydets pushed across the winning run in the seventh, as Sweppenhiser's single brought home Chad Rice to push the VMI advantage to 5-3. Lafayette then rallied to put runners on the corners with no outs in the eighth, before Smink came on to close out the inning, allowing only a sacrifice fly to cut the lead to 5-4. Following the bottom of the eighth inning, which saw the Keydets put a pair of base runners on to no avail, the game was suspended due to darkness. Sunday afternoon, Smink picked up where he left off, retiring the first batter with a groundout before punching out a pair of batters to end the contest.

Leading the VMI offense in the suspended contest was Sweppenhiser, who went 2-for-4 with two RBI, Klint Reed, who also went 2-for-4, and Chad Rice, who went 1-for-3 with his second home run of the day, a solo shot in the fifth inning to break a 3-3 tie. Earning the win was Kevin Crum (1-0), who went 4.2 innings in relief, allowing only three hits and no runs while facing only one batter over the minimum in his outing. Smink picked up his second save of the year, working two innings and allowing no baserunners in the process.

"In game two (of the weekend), offensively I thought that the top of lineup did a nice job of getting on base for the middle of the lineup to drive them in," said Ikenberry. "Chad's home run came in a big spot, and Kelly did a nice job of driving the ball to the gap on his double in the third inning. It was great to see Kevin Crum excel in his longest outing of the year; he did a great job of containing their hitters. Smink was outstanding to get the save, having to come back the next day and getting two more punchouts to end the game."

For Lafayette, the loss went to Ted Gjeldum (0-1), who allowed four earned runs in six innings, giving up six hits while striking out one Keydet. He was relieved by Brian Cope, who worked the final two innings, issuing three walks and two hits that led to one Keydet run. At the plate, the Leopards got multiple hits from Tom Ambrosole (2-for-4, double) and Dave Drechsel (2-for-4, two RBI).

In the final contest of the weekend, the Keydets jumped on top early thanks to a three-run, first-inning home run by junior Robert Crumpler, his first of the season. Each team then posted a run in the second inning, before VMI starter Chris Henderson was forced to leave the contest in the third inning. He was relieved by fellow freshman Kevin Booth, who worked the next three innings, allowing two runs, one earned, on only two hits while earning strikeouts five of the nine outs he recorded.

Booth was lifted in the sixth inning in favor of junior Corey Bachman, who allowed an RBI single to Mike Raible, as Lafayette cut the VMI advantage to 4-3, heading to the bottom of the sixth.

But the Keydets would answer in that frame, pushing across two unearned runs off of reliever Kevin Reese. After Shane Geisslinger was hit by a pitch and Rice reached on a perfectly-placed bunt single, Good reached on a fielder's choice. After Sweppenhiser made the second out, Crumpler reached on a fielding error by the shortstop, scoring Geisslinger. On the second pitch he saw, Will Smith singled to right field, bringing home Good to give the Keydets the 6-3 lead.

The top of the seventh inning would spell trouble for the Keydets, as Lafayette would push across four runs to take a 7-6 lead while sending ten batters to the plate in the process. A pair of errors, two singles and three walks would get the job done for the Leopards, as the third pitcher used by the Keydets in the inning would be the one to deliver all three outs, that being Smink.

Entering the game with bases loaded and no outs, Smink allowed only one hit as well as a walk while inducing a pair of fielder's choices in the inning. An error on the third baseman brought home another run before Smink could strike out Chris Luick for the final out of a seemingly endless inning for the Keydets.

However, the hosts would go back to work in the bottom of the inning. A leadoff single by senior catcher Chase Buchanan was followed two batters later by another single by Geisslinger. A wild pitch would move each runner one base, before a two-out double down the left field line by Good would plate both runners, moving the Keydets back in front by an 8-7 margin.

As it was in the series' two previous contests, it was the Travis Smink show from there, as he allowed only a walk to the Leopards' cleanup hitter the rest of the way. Smink's line for the contest showed that he worked three full innings, allowing only one hit while striking out two in earning his third win of the year.

Offensively, the Keydets were led by Good, who went 3-for-4 with two RBI, Jacoby Fields, who went 2-for-5, Rice, who went 2-for-4, and Crumpler, whose only hit of the contest was the three-run homer. For Lafayette, Frank Cortazar went 3-for-5 and scored twice, while Raible went 2-for-3 with a double and an RBI in the game. The loss went to John Fugett (0-1), who worked the final two innings, allowing two runs on three hits while striking out three.

"Obviously, it was great to get on top early on Crumpler's homer," said Ikenberry. "We knew that our bullpen would be the secret of our success, and it showed in today's game. Henderson did a nice job early, and Kevin Booth threw three strong innings for us. And Smink's performance all weekend was just outstanding. We came through with a lot of two-out hits when we needed them, none bigger than B.T.'s double in the seventh."

The Keydets will take to the road on Tuesday for a non-conference showdown with Richmond at 2 p.m. Lafayette returns home for a four-game set with Saint Peter's, beginning on Saturday at noon.