Atlantic 10 Conference Tournament
Score: #2 VCU 11, #3 Dayton 3
Location: Tysons, Va. (Capital One Park)
Records: VCU 35-21, Dayton 33-21
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The short story: Designated hitter
Eli Weisner blasted a game-changing grand slam – one of three VCU homers on the day – as second-seeded VCU slugged its way past third-seeded Dayton Wednesday in the second day of the Atlantic 10 Conference Tournament. With the victory, the Rams advance to Friday's semifinal round.
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LEADING OFF
- Weisner's homer was his second in as many days. He's driven in six runs in two tournament games this week. He was 1-for-4 Wednesday
- Senior third baseman Brandon Eike, who was named A-10 Player of the Year on Wednesday morning, did nothing to dull that shine. The Powhatan, Va. native continued his torrid tournament with a 3-for-4 day that included a homer, two RBIs and three runs scored
- Senior shortstop William Bean also homered, while graduate second baseman Casey Kleinman finished 3-for-5 for the Black and Gold
- Four VCU pitchers – Jack Hoeymans, Everett Vaughan, Cade Dressler and Maison Martinez – combined to hold Dayton, the A-10's highest-scoring offense, to just three runs on 10 hits. VCU pitching issued just two walks on the day
THE STRETCH
- VCU battered Dayton pitching for 14 hits, six of them for extra bases
- Weisner broke open a 4-2 game in the bottom of the fourth when hammered a high fly ball just over the left centerfield fence for a grand slam. Bean added a solo shot down the left field line in the fifth to extend VCU's lead to 9-2
- Eike snapped a 1-1 tie and gave the Rams the lead for good with a two-run, opposite field homer in the third. He hit a solo homer to nearly the exact same location on Tuesday against Saint Joseph's. Senior centerfielder Cooper Benzin made it 4-1 in VCU's favor a short time later when he hit an RBI triple into the corner in right field
- The VCU bullpen held the Flyers to just four hits and one run over the final five innings
NOTABLE
- Eike is 7-for-8 with two home runs and four runs driven in in two A-10 Tournament games. He has reached base in all 10 of his plate appearances
- VCU has won nine straight A-10 Tournament games
NEXT UP
VCU will face crosstown rival and fourth-seeded Richmond in Friday's semifinals at 11 a.m. at Capital One Park. The Rams recently took two of three from the Spiders to close out the regular season. Â
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