The Virginia Wesleyan University baseball (20-18, 10-10 ODAC) team closed out its regular season with a hard-fought, back-and-forth battle, ultimately falling 11-8 to Regent despite a relentless offensive effort and multiple late-inning rallies.
The Marlins wasted no time responding after surrendering a run in the top of the first. Joshua Jones sparked the offense with a single and a stolen base, setting the tone early. After working his way around the bases, Jones came home on a sacrifice fly from Nick Valentin to even the score at 1-1.
The Marlins grabbed their first lead in the third inning. Ty James reached and advanced into scoring position before Gino Meienschein continued his outstanding day at the plate with a base hit. Moments later, Marcell Whitfield delivered with an RBI single to push Wesleyan in front, 2-1.
Regent answered in the fourth, but Virginia Wesleyan showed immediate resilience in the bottom half. After Ryan Dobrinsky reached and moved into scoring position, Darius Walston and Joshua Jones helped keep the inning alive. Meienschein came through again in the clutch, ripping a two-RBI single to tie the game at 4-4 and cap another strong offensive response.
Despite Regent regaining the lead in the middle innings, the Marlins continued to chip away. In the sixth, Walston jump started the offense with a double down the line before Jones followed with a single. James brought a run home with a sacrifice bunt, trimming the deficit and keeping the pressure on.
Virginia Wesleyan's biggest push came in the seventh inning. After falling behind, the Marlins refused to back down. Rocco Rollins and Walston each recorded key hits, with Walston driving in two runs to ignite the rally. Jones added another base knock to keep the line moving, and Meienschein capped his stellar performance with an RBI walk, pulling Wesleyan within three at 11-8.
The Marlins continued to battle into the ninth. James reached base and Meienschein delivered once again with a triple, his fourth hit of the day, but the comeback attempt came up just short.
Offensively, Virginia Wesleyan produced 13 hits in the contest, led by a dominant performance from Meienschein, who went a perfect 4-for-4 with three RBI and a triple. Walston added two hits, two RBI, and three runs scored, while Jones collected three hits and set the table throughout the afternoon. Whitfield also chipped in with a key RBI as part of the balanced attack.
