PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla.—Sophomore center fielder
Chris Rotondo (Redding, Conn.) and senior designated hitter
JP Radvany (Lawrenceville, N.J.) had three hits apiece, junior left fielder
Timothy Lilly (Glen Ellyn, Ill.) hit a grand slam and Villanova (1-7) rolled to a 16-3 win over St. Bonaventure (0-1) in the Snowbird Baseball Classic on Saturday afternoon. The barrage of offense was plenty of support for sophomore starting pitcher
Jimmy Kingsbury (Phoenixville, Pa.), who pitched into the eighth inning and earned his first collegiate win.
Every batter in the Wildcats starting lineup had at least one of the team's 15 hits on the day. Rotondo was 3-for-7 with two doubles and three runs scored, freshman shortstop
Dylan McNary (Jefferson, Mass.) was on base four times with two hits and two walks, and seven different players scored two or more runs. Villanova opened the scoring with three runs in the third inning and built the lead to 7-0 by the top of the sixth. The score was 7-2 going to the eighth inning before the Wildcats plated three in the top of the eighth and six more in the ninth.
Kingsbury (1-1, 4.74 ERA) pitched well for the second straight start, allowing three earned runs on eight hits while walking one and striking out five. He didn't allow a run until Tyler Kelder's two-out, two-run home run in the bottom of the sixth. Kingsbury departed after allowing consecutive singles with one out in the eighth inning, and the duo of sophomore
Cameron Mathes (Broomall, Pa.) and freshman
Jimmy Franchetti (Marlton, N.J.) combined to record the final five outs of the game.
One day after scoring three or more runs in three different innings, Villanova put up at least three runs four times in Saturday's game. The teams were scoreless through two, but Rotondo reached on an error leading off in the top of the third inning and three runs eventually came in to score. Freshman third baseman
Nick Lorusso (Monroe, Conn.) walked with one out and junior first baseman
Ryan Toohers (Florham Park, N.J.) was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Radvany drove in the game's first run with a single through the left side and sophomore second baseman
Pat O'Neill (Eagleville, Pa.) followed with a two-run single to left-center.
The score was 4-0 after five innings in a game where there were still a combined 15 runs to come. Rotondo doubled to left to open the top of the sixth, moved to third on a balk and scored on a wild pitch. Later in the inning, Radvany singled home another run and junior left fielder
John Heilenbach (Western Springs, Ill.) hit a sacrifice fly.
In the bottom of the sixth, Alex Schutz doubled to left with one out and Kelder hit a 2-1 pitch over the fence in left-center with two away to get St. Bonaventure on the board. Kingsbury struck out Nolan Hayward to end the inning and worked around a one-out single in the bottom of the seventh to preserve what was then a five-run lead.
Heilenbach singled home a run in the top of the eighth inning and sophomore catcher
Colin Bergh (Seaford, Del.) had a two-run single in the inning which made the score 10-2. McNary and Lorusso drew consecutive leadoff walks to start a six-run ninth inning. They each moved up a base on a balk, Toohers delivered an RBI single and Radvany drove in his third run of the day on a fielder's choice. An error was committed on the play which allowed Toohers to be safe at second, while O'Neill then walked on five pitches to load the bases. Lilly, who entered the game as a pinch runner in the top of the eighth inning and was batting for the first time, hit an 0-1 pitch for a grand slam to left-center.
The game was the second of the weekend and the eighth of the season for the Wildcats, while St. Bonaventure was playing its season opener and used 22 players in the contest. Right-handed pitcher Ben Contento (0-1) started for the Bonnies and pitched the first three innings. He was charged with three runs (two earned) on three hits while walking two and striking out six.
Villanova has two games on its Sunday schedule, including a 12 p.m. contest against Chicago State and a 3:30 p.m. game with Mount St. Mary's.
POST-GAME NOTES
- Villanova scored 16 runs in a game for the first time since a 21-4 win over Mount St. Mary's on March 4, 2015. That game also came in the Snowbird Baseball Classic.
- Villanova has scored 27 runs in its last two games, including 11 against Chicago State on Friday evening to go along with the 16 against St. Bonaventure. It is the most runs in a two-game span for the Wildcats since the team scored 31 runs on April 6-7, 2012 in the last two games of a three-game series at West Virginia. The front end of that two-game sequence was a 26-11 win and featured a 17-run fifth inning.
- Timothy Lilly's grand slam was the first by a Villanova hitter since first baseman Max Beermann hit one at La Salle on March 11, 2015.
- Chris Rotondo is the first Villanova hitter to have seven at-bats in a nine-inning game since Kevin Wagner against Norfolk State on February 26, 2012.
- Nick Lorusso has reached base safely in each of the first eight games of his career. He is the only Villanova hitter to reach base in all eight games this season. Lorusso has started seven of eight games on the season and is batting .360 (9-for-25) with a .543 on-base percentage and a .560 slugging percentage. Those are all team highs, as are his nine walks.