George Washington University
1-0
Nicholls State
0-2
Fresh Faces Lead Baseball to 7-3 Win in Opener
2/14/2020 10:59:00 PM | Baseball
Biancone, Cohen shine in season-opening victory over Nicholls State
Biancone came through in the clutch in his first two collegiate at-bats, twice driving in a pair of runs with two gone. First, it was a bases-loaded single with two away in the top of the first, plating senior Steve Barmakian and junior Tyler Hix to give GW a quick 2-0 lead.
An inning later, Biancone was presented with the same opportunity and delivered another two-out single, plating Hix and sophomore Cade Fergus as part of a three-run frame to push the Buff & Blue ahead, 5-0.
From there, it was smooth sailing for redshirt sophomore starter Harrison Cohen, making his first appearance in Buff & Blue since 2018. In his first career start, Cohen picked up where he left off from a standout summer, limiting the Colonels to three earned runs in 6.1 innings with nine strikeouts and no walks to earn the win.
Senior Andrew Wheeler recorded the second out in the seventh inning before giving way to classmate Keagan McGinnis, who mowed down Nicholls the rest of the way, recording the final seven outs via strikeout, six swinging, to record the save.
In total, GW struck out 16 Nicholls batters on the night, the most recorded by a Colonial staff in head coach Gregg Ritchie's tenure (since 2013).
GW added a pair of insurance tallies for good measure in the ninth via RBI singles from Barmakian and sophomore Noah Levin.
Biancone led the Buff & Blue at the plate, going 3-for-5 with the four driven in. Barmakian added three hits as well, while Hix contributed a pair of knocks and scored three runs.
The Colonials continue the Baseball at the Bayou Classic on Saturday, facing SIUE at 3 p.m. The Cougars bested Nicholls, 8-5, in their season opener on Friday.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Cohen, Harrison (1-0)
L: Mejia Jr., Shane (0-1)
S: McGinnis, Keagan (1)
Batting:
2B: Hix, Tyler 1
RBI: Barmakian, Steve 1 ; Hix, Tyler 1 ; Levin, Noah 1 ; Biancone, Joe 4
SH: Fergus, Cade 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Fergus, Cade 1 ; Barmakian, Steve 1 ; Hix, Tyler 3 ; Bogan, Ervin 2
SB: Fergus, Cade 1 ; Hix, Tyler 1
CS: Barmakian, Steve 1
HBP: Boselli, Domenic 1
PO: Hix, Tyler 1
Batting:
HR: Jobert, Brayden 1
RBI: Tribble, Nathan 2 ; Jobert, Brayden 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Belle, Dillon 1 ; France, Austin 1 ; Jobert, Brayden 1
SB: Washington, Xane 1 ; Simon, Dane 1
HBP: Simon, Dane 1 ; Prejean, Ivan 1
