Rich Bonino pitched six scoreless innings and Phoenix Bowman hit a home run as the Chestnut Hill College Baseball team shut out nationally ranked Molloy University 5-0 Saturday in game three of the Northeast Challenge at the Ripken Experience in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
The Griffins improve to 2-1 overall while the Lions, ranked #22 in the most recent NCBWA Top 25 poll fall to 2-1.
Bonino started and tossed six innings of two-hit baseball, striking out three and walking three to earn the win. He pitched out of a base-loaded nobody out situation in his final inning of work, inducing two strikeouts and a popout to end the inning. Luke Schweiker pitched the final three innings to earn his first collegiate save. Schweiker struck out two and walked one, allowing just two hits.
Bowman had the Griffins only extra base hit, a solo home run in the third inning. He, along with Kenyon Motley had two hits apiece.
Michael Benedetto III's infield groundout in the first scored Bowman to give CHC a 1-0 lead. Alex Fascia walked and later scored on Motley's single in the second inning, as the Griffins took a 2-0 lead.
Bowman led off the third with a solo home run. Aiden Myers followed with a walk and later scored on Jason Kelly's RBI single. Benedetto scored the Griffins' final run on a fielder's choice two batters later.
Molloy got their first hit in the top of the fourth but was promptly retired on a double play ball induced by Bonino. Another double play by the Griffins in the fifth ended a one-out threat with two runners on. The Lions made their biggest threat in the top half of the sixth, loading the bases with nobody out. Bonino then recorded a strikeout, induced a pop out to the shortstop and struck on the final batter of the inning to end the threat.
Schweiker entered in the seventh inning and allowed a walk and a hit by pitch in the seventh and eighth before giving up a pair of singles in the ninth with two out. He then induced an infield groundout to end the game and earn the save.
The baseball team concludes their four game stint at Myrtle Beach on Sunday, February 23, 2025, with a game against another regionally ranked team, Franklin Pierce University. First pitch is at 9:00 a.m.
