Hit to right…fair ball! Lummus comes up clutch in victory over Beloit
Ryan Phillips - Sports Editor
After a delay of over an hour due to a missing umpire, the Scots sent Monmouth native Toby Turnquist to the mound to begin the matchup. After two innings, Turnquist gave up three runs, two from a home run to right-center field by Beloit’s Seth Brankey.
An offensive awakening followed for the Scots. Clayton Matkovic singled to the shortstop, allowing Nate Reed to cross home plate in the third inning.
After Turnquist found the strike zone, Daniel Lummus stepped up to the plate and reached base. Alex Dye then sent one to the outfield, allowing Lummus to tag and score. Deja vu struck as Matkovic picked up his second RBI of the game, scoring Reed to tie the game at three.
Turnquist continued to shut down the Buccaneers, and the 7th inning brought a warm invitation for the Scots. Eric Campen led off with a walk with the bases loaded. The Scots took a 4-3 lead, and then Lummus poked a ball down the right-field line that barely stayed fair.
“When I made contact, I knew I hit it decent, but I honestly wasn’t sure if it would stay fair,” Lummus said. “I was running down the line, hoping it would stay fair because I knew how important any insurance runs would be for us to secure a win.”
The team went wild, and even Coach Betourne fist-pumped Lummus after he slid into third.
“The team’s reaction was priceless. Seeing them all fired up got me more fired up to close out an important game against a good team,” Lummus said.
Shortly after the much-needed triple, Dye joined in on the fun in the 8th, hitting his fourth home run of the season to right field for a solo shot. Matkovic and Aidan Parkins got on base, allowing Aidan Scott to find a gap and score both. The Scots led 10-4 going into the 9th and eventually won 10-7, with Nick Villa closing out the game.
Lummus went 4-6 with 3 RBIs. Dye and Matkovic were not far behind, each collecting three hits and scoring 2.
The Scots travel to play Ripon College on Saturday and Sunday for a three-game series to close out the regular season.