Kissimmee, Fla.— The Toledo baseball team won its first game of the 2018 season on Saturday, defeating Saint Louis, 4-1. The Rockets fell to Pittsburgh, 17-3, in their second game of the day.

Toledo 4, Saint Louis 1
Toledo plated the game's first run in the top of the first inning on a wild pitch, and the next run from either team wouldn't come around to score until the sixth. Saint Louis tied the game at 1-1 in that frame, but the stalemate wouldn't last long. Junior Ross Adolph drove in the go-ahead run on a RBI double into the left-center gap. The Rockets would score a couple runs in the top of the ninth to bring the final score to 4-1.

Sophomore Layne Schnitz-Paxton started for the Rockets in game one, allowing just one run and striking out four in 5.1 great innings. Juniors Jake Stout and Nate Haugh provided Toledo with 3.2 shutout frames out of the bullpen. Senior AJ Montoya, junior Riley Campbell, and junior Ross Adolph led the way on offense with two hits apiece, while leadoff hitter and senior Matt Hansen scored two runs.

How it Happened

• Hansen led the game off with a blooper that dropped between a few Billiken fielders for the Rockets' first baserunner. He later scored when a pitch to senior Dalton Bollinger skittered away from the catcher, giving Toledo a 1-0 lead.
• Schnitz-Paxton found himself in a bit of trouble early, with runners on second and third in the bottom of the first inning. Unfazed, he recorded a big strikeout to end the inning.
• The next run came in the bottom of the sixth inning. SLU's Jake Garella laced a single to right field, tying the game up at 1-1.
• Saint Louis had the bases loaded with two outs in that inning, but Stout jammed the hitter at the plate to force a little pop up to first base and leave the frame with minimal damage.
• Toledo got that run back in the seventh inning on an RBI double by junior Ross Adolph. Stout carried the momentum into the bottom half, getting SLU to go down in order on just five pitches.
• Haugh came in from the bullpen in the bottom of the eighth with runners on first and second and no outs. He was able to get the Rockets out of the inning unscathed, and would go on to retire the final three outs of the victory.
• Toledo scored a pair of insurance runs in the top half of the ninth inning courtesy of Adolph and Bollinger.

Pittsburgh 17, Toledo 3
It was a different story in game two, with the Rockets falling 17-3 to Pittsburgh. Toledo committed four errors after not committing any in the first two games of the year. Freshman Kyle Bischoff started the game for Toledo and junior Billy Todorowski, sophomore Joey Prechtel, senior Alex Wagner, freshman John Servello, and senior Axel Bueter all pitched as well.

Freshman Zach Schwartzenberger had a debut to remember. He smacked a solo home run to right field in his first collegiate at-bat in the third inning. The freshman led the way offensively with two hits. Seniors Hansen and Brad Boss showed patience, drawing two walks apiece.

How it Happened 

• Pittsburgh scored once in the bottom of the first inning and five times in the bottom of the second to take an early 6-0 lead.
• Schwartzenberger's solo shot put the Rockets on the board in the third inning.
• The Panthers came back with three runs in the bottom of the third inning to take a 9-1 lead and pushed across six runs in the bottom of the fourth to go ahead 15-1.
• Senior Casey Gose, in his first at-bat of the season, ripped a double down the left field line to drive in two runs in the top of the fifth.
• Pitt answered with two runs of its own in the bottom half of the fifth inning, putting the score at 17-3.

Toledo's final game in Kissimmee will be on Sunday at 11:00 a.m. against Saint Louis. Senior Sam Shutes is scheduled to pitch for the Rockets.