ELIZABETHTOWN, Pa. – The weekend opened with Elizabethtown improving to a 3-1 record in Commonwealth Conference play against Widener on The Pride' home turf. Saturday afternoon, The Blue Jays kept their offense rolling, this time earning two more big conference wins over Widener at Kevin Scott Boyd Stadium. Elizabethtown held on to a lead in the first game of the day 8-6 while shutting out the Widener hitters 7-0.

In the first contest of the day, E-town (14-7, 5-1 CC) pitcher Rob Cressman gave the Jays an instant boost opening the game with a 1-2-3 inning. E-town bats responded in the bottom of the inning, driving in two on two hits. Steve Motika hit a run-scoring double to right field to bring in Kyle Gable who reached on an error earlier in the frame. Jon Bacher scored on a heads up play, capitalizing on a wild pitch by Widener's (13-10, 4-5 CC) starter Joe Sessa to get the home team out to an early 2-0 lead.

The hits just kept coming. The Blue and Gray extended their lead each of the next three innings, slowly chipping away at the plate to take a 5-4 lead after four innings of play.

The Pride third baseman Dennis Hocker brought his team within a striking distance after belting a skyrocket of a homerun to left center field in the top of the fourth. The home run is Hocker's fourth of the season, even more impressively it marked the junior's third round-tripper of the series with Elizabethtown.

Cressman produced two solid innings of the work in the fifth and sixth, holding the opposing offense hitless in his final two innings of work to maintain the narrow lead.  

E-town once again responded to their pitcher's efforts on the mound with a dose of run support. Tyler Weary dropped down a bunt and got the legs in motion for a bunt single to start surge in the bottom of the sixth. Kyle Gable turned a 3-1 count into his second hit of game. After the runners were moved up on a sacrifice bunt, Widener elected to broaden their options with one out and intentionally walked Motika on to the open bag. Dillon Tagle fought of a 1-2 count for an RBI single to score Weary. Matt Day entered the game to stop the bleeding with ducks on the pound for the Jays.

The Pride defense committed their third error of the game on a hotshot to the shortstop, allowing the final two runs to cross for the E-town.

With an 8-4 lead in their favor heading into the last chance effort for WU, Todd Leister entered the game to close out the first contest of the set. Things got dramatic and tricky for the defense in ninth. The first three batters reach base on two walks and an error. Sean Saverio locked in to 1-2 pitch through fielders on the left side for an RBI. Centerfielder Dan Sieracki lifted a sac-fly to left field to bring in the second run of the inning. Leister denied Hocker of another home run chance, getting the third baseman to fly out to preserve the 8-6 win.

Cressman was awarded the win in six innings of work in which the Blue Jays never relinquished the lead. Cressman now has four wins on the season.

A pair of Blue Jays, got a pair of hits. Gable and Weary each found base twice. Gable drove in a run, recorded a triple and came around to score twice. Motika was 2-for-2 with a double.

The late afternoon contest was a mix of E-town hitting backed by a stellar complete game pitching effort. Tara Letnaunchyn was tough to solve at the plate for anyone stepping into the box.

Letnaunchyn allowed just four hits and a walk rendering the Widener offense scoreless in seven innings.

Gable added three more hits to bring his total to five on the day and seven in the series. Jon Bacher's bat continues to find a place in the lineup no matter if the fresman is catching behind the plate of serving as the specialty hitter in the game. Bacher rattled off two more hits, an RBI and a run scored.

E-town once again took a healthy early lead, scoring five runs by the third including a three-run first.  Bacher and Gable scored on a fielding miscue and Pat Mulligan belted a shot to center field to drive in Tagle for the 3-0 lead.

Tagle took part in sending runners to the plate with an RBI double down the line in right field.  Bacher followed suit in the third inning with a first-pitch RBI single to take the 5-0 lead.

E-town tacked on two more runs in the fifth on two hits and two errors.

Widener continually shot themselves in the foot with fielding errors, extending the Blue Jays momentum at the plate. The Pride committed four more errors in the field.

Elizabethtown returns to action tomorrow afternoon in a non-conference game with Franklin & Marshall at 1p.m.