Stroble Sets Season Hits Record As Maple Leafs Drop Series Finale
By Seth Wesman
Sports Information Intern
GOSHEN, Ind. — Clinton Stroble II broke the Goshen College record for hits in a season with a first-inning home run, but his two-run shot provided the only offense of the day for the Maple Leafs as Goshen dropped the final game of its series with Huntington University 13-2 on Monday afternoon, falling 13-2.
Goshen (23-27-1, 11-16 Crossroads League) got on the board first when Stroble’s early long ball hit the trees behind the center-field fence , bringing himself and Preston Carr in to score for a 2-0 lead.
The 24th-ranked Foresters (29-11, 22-5) quickly tied the game in the top of the second, the first of 13 unanswered runs across the afternoon. While Huntington’s offense continued to rip, starting pitcher DJ Moore retired 11 straight Maple Leafs after Stroble’s homer.
A Newport News, Virginia, native, Stroble posted his 66th hit of the season, breaking a record set by former Maple Leaf coach and administrator Josh Keister in 2003.
Blake Collins got the start for Goshen and worked five innings before turning things over to the Leafs’ bullpen. Colby Malson, Kyle Kotecki and Travis Grimm all pitched in relief.
Stroble drove in both of his team’s runs as Carr collected a team-high two hits with a run scored in the loss.
Moore took the win with two runs and three strikeouts in five innings of work. Connor West and Caleb Landrum threw out of the bullpen for the Foresters.
Andy Roser and Will Coursen-Carr each homered and drove in four runs for Huntington; five other batters drove in a run each with Roser and Dylan Hendricks each scoring three runs.
The Maple Leafs’ loss, combined with a split doubleheader between Indiana Wesleyan and Mount Vernon Nazarene, locks Goshen into the seventh seed in the eight-team conference tournament that begins Saturday. GC will visit Taylor in the first round before facing Marian or Indiana Wesleyan on Monday in the double-elimination event.
Goshen will be back in action Tuesday afternoon against Rochester College in a single nine-inning non-conference contest. First pitch is set for 2 p.m. with recognition of the team’s seven seniors to follow.
