Baseball Tops Wheaton 13-3

PUNTA GORDA, Fla. -- The Mitchell College baseball team opened its annual Florida trip with a 13-3 victory over Wheaton College (Ill.) on Saturday afternoon at the Snowbird Baseball Classic.

Kyle Hartenstein went 4-for-5 with a double and two RBI to lead the Mitchell offense. Garet Griffin, Rolando Marcano and Jack Finnegan each contributed a pair of hits and combined to drive in six runs.

Mitchell starter Axel De Jesus picked up his first win of the season. He lasted 6.1 innings and gave up three runs on seven hits while striking out four. Brian Ricker, Justin Lawson and Connor Dulin all saw action out of the bullpen and kept Wheaton off the scoreboard the rest of the game.

The Mariners never trailed after putting up four runs in the first inning. An RBI single by Griffin provided the game's first run, and Markus Melendez followed with a two-run poke to right. Finnegan knocked in the final run of the frame with a single to right.

That was enough offense for De Jesus, who cruised through the early innings and didn't hit trouble until the seventh. The Mariners led 9-1 heading into the bottom of the frame, and De Jesus yielded three hits and a walk before exiting the game. Ricker took the ball and got Mitchell out of the inning with a six-run lead intact.

Mitchell closed the door with four runs in the eighth. Jeremy Santos and Marcano each had RBI singles to help put the game away.

Mitchell (3-1 overall) will next face Heidelberg University on Sunday, March 5 at 1 p.m.