The Elon University baseball team was defeated by the University of North Carolina Wilmington, 8-1 for their 26th loss of the season. The Phoenix struggled to keep up with the Seahawks’ hitting as they fell behind early and couldn’t muster any momentum. 

Sophomore starting pitcher Owen Winebarger went into the game with a 4-2 record, but his bid for a fifth win was quickly put to the test. After allowing a leadoff single to Seahawks’ JP Pennella, Trevor Lucas then belted a two-run home run to center field. Winebarger then gave up a single immediately after to Mason Hughes, but bounced back nicely, picking off Hughes to help keep the Seahawks scoreless the rest of the inning. 

Manager Mike Kennedy said that for a guy like Winebarger who relies on fly ball outs, the aggressive hitting from the Seahawks wasn’t ideal on such a clear day. 

“They just jumped on some pitches early,” Kennedy said. “The guy was swinging early in the count and got a hold of one. It happens.”

Despite the encouraging finish, the Seahawks went back to work in the second inning. Another two-run shot to the same area of the field put Elon down 4-0. The Phoenix tried to stage an early rally in the bottom of the inning. Junior outfielders, Vince Fattore and Kevin Danty each drew walks off UNCW pitcher Connor Marshburn with two outs, but he put a quick end to the rally with a strikeout. 

Kennedy said the early struggles from Winebarger were a combination of not having much command, along with a good hitting strategy by the Seahawks. 

“When you miss in the middle of the plate to a good hitter, they have a tendency to make you pay for that,” Kennedy said. “You can get away with that a little bit more when guys aren’t so good, but the guys that have a little bit of power and can guess at the right times are going to have more success.”

Marshburn would use the early runs to his advantage throughout the game. He only surrendered one hit, which was to Fattore in the fourth inning. The Phoenix struck out 10 times as a team, and when they did make solid contact, one of the Seahawks fielders was able to make a play. 

Kennedy said Marshburn’s sinker was particularly difficult for Elon’s hitters. He said they couldn’t get any power outside of a few occasional hard hit balls.

“All of our outs were either by swing and miss, and, or a ground ball,” Kennedy said. “Our plan was to try to get the ball in the air, and we just couldn't do it.”

Elon’s pitching did manage to settle down a little bit, as they held UNCW scoreless from the fourth to the sixth inning. Winebarger ended up going six innings, but relievers sophomore Kehler Hamilton and junior Mike Staiano gave up a combined three runs in the seventh. 

The bats did come to life in the bottom of the ninth when Fattore’s second hit of the game brought home freshman catcher Charlie Evans. Although the Phoenix avoided a shutout, it wasn’t enough to prevent an eventual series sweep.  

Kennedy said he was most disappointed by the team’s energy, describing the environment as more like an intrasquad game. He said he hopes there will be more motivation heading into the team’s next series against William & Mary.

“It’s disappointing,” Kennedy said. “When a team like Wilmington has come in, and you've had a hard go at it with that club, you get down early and it kind of takes the energy away from you. We’ve got to keep the fight.”

The Phoenix will rest for four days before traveling to Williamsburg, Virginia, to play William & Mary at 6 p.m. on May 1.