MOUNT VERNON – It was quite a Senior Day for 17 such Cornell Rams in uniform during Sunday's 14-0, 12-3 Midwest Conference South Division baseball sweep over Knox at Ash Park Field.
Senior right-hander Cameron Anfang (SR/Sullivan, Wis.) was dominant on the mound in Game 1, firing a two-hit shutout in a seven-inning 14-0 rout. The Rams erupted for 10 runs in the first inning of Game 2 and rolled 12-3.
The sweep keeps Cornell (14-19 overall) in contention in the South race at 11-8 with five games looming against Grinnell (9-8 MWC) to complete the 24-game division schedule. Illinois College (15-8 MWC) is the South leader, percentage points ahead of second-place Monmouth (12-7 MWC).
The Rams recognized their senior players between games Sunday, and all that were healthy made contributions to the victories. Coach Seth Wing had 12 different seniors in the starting lineup.
The hard-throwing Anfang (4-2) was on cruise control in the opener, yielding just a pair of singles while striking out nine. He faced only three batters over the minimum and issued just one walk.
Cornell had six players with two-hit games in Caleb Sass (SR/Iowa City, Iowa), James Kent (SO/Phoenix, Ariz.), Dylan Kaiser (SR/Tucson, Ariz.), Ian Renger (SR/Bloomingdale, Ill.), Joe Sarnello (SR/Hoffman Estates, Ill.) and Thomas Jones (SR/Lindenhurst, Ill.). Sass and Jones both recorded three RBIs. Kaiser, Renger and Sarnello all scored three times.
The Rams broke open a 4-0 game with six runs in the fifth, highlighted by Berthel's two-RBI single.
Cornell didn't let up in Game 2, collecting 10 runs and 11 hits during a first-inning outburst. Sass, Kent and Renger each had two hits in the frame, which saw the Rams send 14 batters to the plate.
The Rams added more offensive fireworks in the fourth as Zach Stone (SR/Coralville, Iowa) and Nathan White (SR/Union Grove, Wis.) launched back-to-back solo home runs. Stone finished 3-for-5 with two extra-base hits and three RBIs.
Sass, Berthel, Kent, Renger and White posted two hits apiece.
Cornell's seven pitchers held the Prairie Fire (3-25 overall, 1-17 MWC) to four total hits. Senior left-hander Jack Heneghan (SR/Chicago, Ill.) (1-0) threw a scoreless fifth inning to earn the victory.
Coming up – The Rams play host to Grinnell (9-8 overall, 9-8 MWC) for a single nine-inning game Tuesday night. First pitch is 7 p.m.
