11 Dec 2021 | 03:27 | Baseball
PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla.—Sophomore center fielder Chris Rotondo (Redding, Conn.) and senior designated hitter JP Radvany (Lawrenceville, N.J.) had three hits apiece, junior left fielder Timothy Lilly (Glen Ellyn, Ill.) hit a grand slam and Villanova (1-7) rolled to a 16-3 win over St. Bonaventure (0-1) in the Snowbird Baseball Classic on Saturday afternoon. The barrage of offense was plenty of support for sophomore starting pitcher Jimmy Kingsbury (Phoenixville, Pa.), who pitched into the eighth inning and earned his first collegiate win.
Every batter in the Wildcats starting lineup had at least one of the team’s 15 hits on the day. Rotondo was 3-for-7 with two doubles and three runs scored, freshman shortstop Dylan McNary (Jefferson, Mass.) was on base four times with two hits and two walks, and seven different players scored two or more runs. Villanova opened the scoring with three runs in the third inning and built the lead to 7-0 by the top of the sixth. The score was 7-2 going to the eighth inning before the Wildcats plated three in the top of the eighth and six more in the ninth.
Kingsbury (1-1, 4.74 ERA) pitched well for the second straight start, allowing three earned runs on eight hits while walking one and striking out five. He didn’t allow a run until Tyler Kelder’s two-out, two-run home run in the bottom of the sixth. Kingsbury departed after allowing consecutive singles with one out in the eighth inning, and the duo of sophomore Cameron Mathes (Broomall, Pa.) and freshman Jimmy Franchetti (Marlton, N.J.) combined to record the final five outs of the game.
One day after scoring three or more runs in three different innings, Villanova put up at least three runs four times in Saturday’s game. The teams were scoreless through two, but Rotondo reached on an error leading off in the top of the third inning and three runs eventually came in to score. Freshman third baseman Nick Lorusso (Monroe, Conn.) walked with one out and junior first baseman Ryan Toohers (Florham Park, N.J.) was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Radvany drove in the game’s first run with a single through the left side and sophomore second baseman Pat O’Neill (Eagleville, Pa.) followed with a two-run single to left-center.
The score was 4-0 after five innings in a game where there were still a combined 15 runs to come. Rotondo doubled to left to open the top of the sixth, moved to third on a balk and scored on a wild pitch. Later in the inning, Radvany singled home another run and junior left fielder John Heilenbach (Western Springs, Ill.) hit a sacrifice fly.
In the bottom of the sixth, Alex Schutz doubled to left with one out and Kelder hit a 2-1 pitch over the fence in left-center with two away to get St. Bonaventure on the board. Kingsbury struck out Nolan Hayward to end the inning and worked around a one-out single in the bottom of the seventh to preserve what was then a five-run lead.
Heilenbach singled home a run in the top of the eighth inning and sophomore catcher Colin Bergh (Seaford, Del.) had a two-run single in the inning which made the score 10-2. McNary and Lorusso drew consecutive leadoff walks to start a six-run ninth inning. They each moved up a base on a balk, Toohers delivered an RBI single and Radvany drove in his third run of the day on a fielder’s choice. An error was committed on the play which allowed Toohers to be safe at second, while O’Neill then walked on five pitches to load the bases. Lilly, who entered the game as a pinch runner in the top of the eighth inning and was batting for the first time, hit an 0-1 pitch for a grand slam to left-center.
The game was the second of the weekend and the eighth of the season for the Wildcats, while St. Bonaventure was playing its season opener and used 22 players in the contest. Right-handed pitcher Ben Contento (0-1) started for the Bonnies and pitched the first three innings. He was charged with three runs (two earned) on three hits while walking two and striking out six.
Villanova has two games on its Sunday schedule, including a 12 p.m. contest against Chicago State and a 3:30 p.m. game with Mount St. Mary’s.