AUBURNDALE, Fla. -- The Wayne State University baseball team (3-2 overall) concluded its participation in the RussMatt Invitational on Tuesday with two games against former GLIAC member Gannon (4-4 overall) and the Warriors used four home runs on the day to out-slug the Golden Knights 10-9 in game one before the offense continued to carry the water in game two, winning 12-6.

GAME ONE (W, 10-9)
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Gannon used two hits and two walks to score three runs in the top of the first inning.  The Warriors tied the game with three runs of their own in the bottom of the frame.  JT Conti (Trenton, Mich.) plated two of the runs with a double and Troy Daring, Jr. (Brampton, Ont.) singled to drive home the inning's third run.  WSU took a 6-4 lead in the bottom of the second inning with three hits and a GU throwing error.  Michael Toth (Northville, Mich. / Detroit Catholic Central) and Devin Rose (Farmington Hills, Mich. / Orchard Lake St. Mary's) drew walks to begin the inning and Jacob Finkbeiner (Saline, Mich.) reached via the error allowing a run to score.  Conti then drove in two runs with a single.

- A two-run single by the Golden Knights trimmed WSU's lead to one, 6-5 in the top of the fourth inning but a solo home run from Conti to lead off the bottom of the inning pushed the Green & Gold advantage to two, 7-5.  Gannon homered in the top of the fifth inning to tie the game at 7-7.

- Justin Kelly (Wheaton, Ill. / Wheaton Warrenville South) crushed a two-run blast in the bottom of the sixth inning and an RBI single from Brandon Williams (Sterling Heights, Mich. / Stevenson) gave WSU a 10-7 lead.  Gannon used four walks, an error and a base hit to score two runs in the top of the seventh inning but a timely 6-4-3 double play helped to keep the lead intact and give WSU a 10-9 victory.

AT THE PLATE
- Conti continue his blistering pace, going 3-for-3 with five RBI and scored three runs.  Daring also posted a three-hit game, while Kelly and Williams both went 2-for-4.

ON THE MOUND
- Addison Pawelek (Shelby Twp., Mich. / De La Salle) started and allowed five earned runs over four innings while striking out four batters.  Jack Schmidt (Fishers, Ind. / Indianapolis Cathedral) (1-0) picked up his first collegiate victory, allowing four runs in two innings with two strikeouts.  Taylor Horn (Leon, Ind.) collected his first save of the season, working the final inning and dancing around a base hit, two wild pitches and two walks to close the door.

GAME TWO (W, 12-6)
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Rose walked and Finkbeiner singled to begin the game and Conti reached via an error, which also plated the game's first run.  Daring drove in a run with an RBI groundout.  Gannon got on the board in the bottom of the first inning with an RBI double.  Conti's second home run of the day netted three runs in the top of the second to extend WSU's lead to 5-1.  The Knights used three hits in the bottom of the second inning to trim deficit to 5-2.

- After a single from Rose, a Finkbeiner hit-by-pitch and a walk to Conti to begin the top of the fourth inning loaded the bases before Kelly used a sac fly to produce a run.  Daring followed with a three-run shot, stretching the lead to 9-2.  Four more hits in the top of the sixth plated three runs.  Williams and Josh Blaszczak (Brownstown, Mich. / Riverview Gabriel Richard) drove in runs during the frame.  GU scored four runs on two hits and an error in the bottom of the seventh inning to make the score 12-6 but WSU was able to leave the bases loaded and secure the win.

AT THE PLATE
- Finkbeiner, Daring and Blaszczak all finished with two-hit games, while Daring also drove in four runs.  Conti drove in three runs for his fifth multiple-RBI performance in as many games.

ON THE MOUND
- Josh Nelson (Ann Arbor, Mich. / Saline) (1-0) pitched five innings and struck out four batters, allowing two earned runs on five hits.  Brennan Cox (Taylor, Mich. / Riverview Gabriel Richard) made his collegiate debut and worked an inning, allowing two earned runs.  Brendan Bilkovic (West Bloomfield, Mich.) also appeared in his first contest with WSU and allowed an earned run in his 1/3 of an inning before Richard Hovde (Saline, Mich.) collected the final two outs.

UP NEXT
- Wayne State will play a three-game series against another former GLIAC program when WSU meets Ohio Dominican in Chillicothe, Ohio at V.A. Memorial Stadium beginning on March 3 at 1:00 p.m.