KANSAS CITY, Mo. – In a rare, weather forced, Sunday doubleheader, the Maryville baseball team came away with both in a road tilt at Rockhurst University in Kansas City, Mo., moving to 15-15 on the season with now a 8-6 Great Lakes Valley Conference record.

Game one saw the Saints tally runs in the first five innings to jump to an 8-0 lead, with Cole Christman tallying three RBIs with a home run. Not to be outshined, Ambrose Russo was a doubles machine, tallying three in the contest, a new-single game career-high for the DI-transfer.  

Braden Smith had a massive bounce-back game, going seven while giving up only two runs on nine strikeouts, with Griffin King closing it out. 

For the 5 p.m. bout, Ben Gregory toed the slab, going six with eight strikeouts and only two runs of his own. Josh Herget was the engine of the game, with a 2-4 game resulting in two RBIs. 

GAME 1 | Maryville 8, Rockhurst 2
Russo started off the ballgame with a double, the second straight game he has done so. He would come around to score off a Christman single, with him scoring on a Camden Ruby single just a batter later to leave it 2-0 after one. 

That cycle continued as back-to-back doubles in the second from Russo and Dominic Sharp made it 4-0. 

Jace Burton added a run in the third with Christman's 2-run homer in the fourth making it 7-0. Aaris Stolte slapped home another to leave it 8-0 going into the bottom of the fifth. 

The Hawks attempted to get the bats hot, plating a run in the fifth and sixth, but lockdown work from Smith and King in the final frames sealed it. 

GAME 2 | Maryville 6, Rockhurst 5
With a game one win to their back, the Dawgs unleashed a four-spot to start game two, with Ruby working a bases-loaded walk to get it started. Herget followed that with a single that scored two. Poor Hawk pitching re-loaded the bases as Matt Arnold walked in a run as well. 

Rockhurst added in a run in the bottom of the second, but from there Gregory was excellent. Some sloppy defense and more poor pitching control allowed two more to cross for the Saints in the top of the sixth, leaving it 6-1 into the final frame. 

A big triple in the bottom of the seventh made it interesting, as the home team brought it within two. A RBI single then made it just a one run game. That was as close as it got as the Noah Harbin got the final out with the tying run just 90 feet away. 

UP NEXT
The Saints and Hawks are right back it tomorrow for games three and four. First pitch from Kansas City, Mo. is set for 11 a.m.