Dayton, OH – Owen MacDonnell pitched six innings of one-run ball, and
Chase Swain and
Kosei Suzuki hit home runs as La Salle defeated Dayton, 6-5, for an Atlantic 10 Conference victory Saturday afternoon.
MacDonnell scattered just three hits on two walks while striking out six for third victory of the season. It was the third victory of the week for the Explorers and the teams' first A-10 win since April 11 at Rhode Island.
La Salle now stands at 21-27 overall and 5-18 in conference play.
Clinging to a 2-1 lead, La Salle erupted for four runs in the top of the eighth, which ended up proving as the difference, as the big inning provided enough padding to withstand Dayton's four-run bottom of the ninth.
In that eighth,
Carter Groen got things started with an opposite-field RBI single for his team-leading 64
th RBI of the season, which now sits second overall in the A-10 Conference.
Groen scored three batters later, when Suzuki hit his fifth home run of the season, a three-run shot to give La Salle a 6-1 lead at the time.
The Explorers jumped ahead, 2-0, after three.
Shawn Karpaitis grounded out to score a run over from third in the top of the second, and then Swain hit his ninth homer of the season in the top of the third, a solo shot.
Swain right now is arguably one of the hottest hitters in the A-10 Conference. Riding a six-game hit streak, Swain is 13 for his last 24 and is now hitting .379 on the season. The redshirt-senior is top five statistically in the conference in batting average, slugging, on base, OPS, runs scored, and hits.
MacDonnell allowed his only run with two out in the fifth, but quickly got the third out and pitched a shutdown sixth with a pair of strikeouts to hold the lead.
Jace Terry recorded the final nine outs for La Salle, qualifying for the three inning save.
La Salle vies for its second A-10 series victory tomorrow afternoon, with first pitch set for 12 noon.
