GROVE CITY, Pa. -- The Grove City College baseball team scored 10 runs in the bottom of the eighth inning Tuesday to break open its 19-5 victory over visiting Penn State Shenango in the Wolverines' 2024 season and home opener at Jack Behringer Field. 

Junior shortstop Luke Vittone (Seven Fields, Pa./Eden Christian) paced Grove City's 16-hit attack by going 5 for 6 with two doubles and three runs scored. Freshman left fielder Caison Holland (Freedom, Pa./Ambridge) went 3 for 5 with a double and knocked in five runs while senior first baseman Markus Williams (Sewickley, Pa./Eden Christian) doubled twice and drove in three runs. 

Junior DH Josh Minnich (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Cumberland Valley) doubled, singled and scored three runs. Freshman catcher Adam Weber (McKees, Pa./Montour) scored three times. 

Grove City trailed 4-2 in the bottom of the fifth inning but rallied to take the lead with a four-run outburst. Weber scored on a single by freshman second baseman Sam Bevin (Louisville, Ky./Wake County), cutting the lead to 4-3. Williams then gave Grove City (1-0) the lead for good with a three-run double that scored Minnich, Vittone and sophomore center fielder Nick Sampson (Venetia, Pa./Peters Township).

Vittone doubled in Weber in the sixth to give the Wolverines a 7-5 lead. Holland poked a two-run single through the left side in the seventh, pushing the lead to 9-5 as Minnich and Williams both came home. 

Minnich laced a two-run single during Grove City's 10-run eighth inning while Holland cleared the bases with a three-run double. Sampson and freshman pinch hitter Gabe Gorman (Medina, Ohio/Medina) both walked with the bases loaded while Bevin drove in a run with a bases-loaded hit batsman.

Junior catcher Aaron Gault (Youngstown, Ohio/Heartland Christian) singled in sophomore third baseman Kenny Lavrich (Franklin, Pa./Cranberry) as Grove City sent 17 men to the plate. 

Freshman reliever Jack Houston (Vienna, Va./Vienna) earned the win with three innings of relief. He struck out four and allowed one earned run in his outing. Freshman Wil Peters (Mesa, Ariz./Westwood) started and pitched into the third inning. He allowed one run and no hits in his two innings. 

Freshman David Gallagher (Coraopolis, Pa./Montour) allowed one run in the sixth. Junior Evan Umland (Pasadena, Calif./La Canada) fanned five in two scoreless innings of relief. Freshman Micheal Earman (Grove City, Pa./Grove City) pitched a scorless ninth inning. He struck out the final batters of the game. 

Grove City will host La Roche in a single non-conference game at 2 p.m. Wednesday.