FLORENCE, Ky. -- The Grove City College baseball team opened the 2017 season with a split, falling to Mount St. Joseph 11-0 in the opener before using 16 walks to cruise to a 15-3 victory over the Lions in the nightcap on Thursday afternoon at UC Health Stadium.

Sophomore John Bini (Staten Island, N.Y./Xaverian) earned the game two victory for the Wolverines (1-1) on the mound, scattering seven hits and three runs (two earned) over five innings while striking out five. The win is the 10th of Bini's career, moving him into a tie for eighth on Grove City's career wins list.

Senior second baseman Nolan Myers (Landisville, Pa./Hempfield) led Grove City's offense with three hits on the day - including a pair in the game-two win - while sophomore third baseman Micah Burke (Gilbert, Ariz./Homeschooled), freshman first baseman Matt Dayton (Allison Park, Pa./Hampton), and freshman pitcher/outfielder) Austin Wacker (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Cumberland Valley) each posted a pair of hits in the two games.

Grove City took advantage of three first-inning walks to jump out to a 6-0 lead on the Lions. Myers drove in the first Wolverine run of the season by scoring junior center fielder Tyler Graham (Vandergrift, Pa./Kiski Area) with a single to center while sophomore left fielder Travis Auth (Medina, Ohio/Medina) followed a walk by junior designated hitter Cameron Smail (Apollo, Pa./Kiski Area) with a two-run single to center to give Grove City a 3-0 lead. Wacker followed with another single to center to score Smail, and Dayton closed the first-inning barrage with a triple to right-center that brought both Auth and Wacker across the plate to make it 6-0 Wolverines.

The Lions (2-1) used three singles and a sacrifice fly to get one run back in the bottom of the second, but Grove City scored six more runs in the top of the fourth to break the game open. The Wolverines scored their first five runs of the frame without recording a hit, as a pair of walks and a hit-by-pitch loaded the bases with one out, and Burke drew an RBI-hit-by-pitch to extend the lead to 7-1 before senior catcher Andy Fritz (Saxonburg, Pa./Knoch), Myers, Smail, and Auth each drew RBI-walks to push Grove City's lead to 11-1. Wacker notched Grove City's lone hit of the inning with an RBI-single to right before the Lions finally got out of the frame.

Burke added an RBI-single to score senior shortstop David Laylock (Pittsburgh, Pa./Pine-Richland) in the fifth. After a pair of Mount St. Joseph runs in the bottom of the fifth, Graham drew a bases-loaded RBI-walk in the sixth, and Burke followed with a groundout that scored Wacker to close the scoring at 15-3.

Senior Jimmy Palmer (Pittsburgh, Pa./Chartiers Valley) and sophomore Derek Boyle (Stafford, Va./Brooke Point) each pitched one scoreless inning in relief for the Wolverines.

In the opener, the Wolverines gave up seven runs in the first two innings to fall into an early hole. Meanwhile, the offense put runners on base in all seven innings, including loading the bases in both the first and the seventh, but couldn't come up with the timely hit to cut into the Lions' lead.

Wacker took the loss on the mound for Grove City, allowing seven runs on seven hits while striking out a pair over two innings. Senior Cedric Hils (Pittsburgh, Pa./Central Catholic) allowed three hits and one run while striking out a pair during the third and fourth innings while freshmen Corey Thomas (Carlisle, Pa./Carlisle) and Henry Womble (Lancaster, Pa./Lancaster Catholic) each pitched a scoreless inning in relief.

Grove City will continue further south tomorrow for its annual spring break trip in Auburndale, Fla. and the surrounding area. The Wolverines will play eight games from March 4-11 in the RussMatt Central Florida Invitational, beginning with a doubleheader against Ohio Northern on Saturday at 2:30 PM.