The Bison traveled to North Carolina to take on the Davidson Wildcats in a three-game series. The Orange and Blue lost game one but bounced back and were victorious in the second and third games to claim the series.
In game one, the Bison were defeated 9-2. Billy Kender ʼ25 was 2-for-4 at the plate with the lone RBI for the Bison; Kender accounted for two of the Bison’s four total hits. Michael Chiaravallo ʼ27 recorded a hit, and Brady Karp ʼ25 was 1-for-2 at the plate with two walks.
The Wildcats took an early 3-0 lead. In the top of the third, Kender hit a two-out RBI single to score the Bison’s first run of the game. In the seventh inning, the Wildcats increased their lead to 7-1; they added two more in the eighth. The Bison snagged a solitary run in the ninth, but it wasn’t enough to best the Wildcats, who won 9-2.
The Orange and Blue shook off the loss and came back with an 8-3 victory in game two. The Wildcats claimed an early two-run lead, but the Bison responded with six straight innings of scoring.
Michael Trommer ʼ26 had a career day, raking in four runs off two doubles, his second career game with four RBIs. In the fifth inning, Trommer tied the game 3-3 with an RBI double to score Billy Fluharty ʼ27. His second RBI came in the eighth inning, which cleared the bases and scored three runs, extending the Bison’s lead to 8-3.
Ryan Facinelli ʼ26 had another multi-hit game for the Orange and Blue, going 2-for-4 at the plate. Kender was 1-for-3 with an RBI, two runs and two walks. He put the Bison on the board with a sacrifice fly in the third. Andrew Swenson ʼ27 drove in the other RBI, and Garrison Bullock ʼ26 scored the winning run off a wild pitch in the sixth inning.
Jake Schultz ʼ27 earned his first win of the year starting on the mound. He allowed three runs, one of which was unearned, off seven hits throughout five innings. Shultz fanned five batters and didn’t walk any. The Bison bullpen allowed no runs between two relievers. Dante Pavone ʼ27 tossed a scoreless seventh inning, working his way out of the inning with two runners on base. Jonathan Adelmann ʼ27 secured the save, pitching three scoreless innings to close the game; Adelmann struck out three batters. Adelmann has thrown five scoreless innings in two relief appearances this season, only allowing three hits and no runs. Collectively, the Bison pitchers only allowed one walk.
The Orange and Blue scored eight runs off seven hits, compared to the Wildcats managing only three runs from nine hits. The Bison were given 10 free bases via eight walks and two hit-by-pitches. After making three errors in the first four innings, the Bison defense came up clutch, turning double plays in the fifth, sixth and seventh innings and making no more errors. Fluharty caught a sinking line drive and fired to first to end the seventh inning with a double play.
The Bison carried their winning momentum into game three. The Bison took the series with a 10-7 win over the Wildcats, capitalizing on a three-run sixth inning.
Kender crushed the Bison’s first home run of the season with a three-run shot in the fourth inning. He was 3-for-5 at the plate and had a career-high four RBIs.
The Bison scored two runs early in the third inning and raked five more in the fourth. Chiaravallo singled and Luke Nascimento ʼ27 doubled, giving the Bison runners on the corners. Fluharty smoked a two-run double, and Karp reached base from being hit by a pitch. Kender’s three-run homerun, the sixth of his career, gave the Bison a 7-1 lead.
The Wildcats made their way back into the game with a four-run fifth inning. The Orange and Blue responded with three runs in the sixth to extend their lead. Kender and Trommer occupied the corners with one out. Facinelli put the ball in play off the first pitch, resulting in a fielder’s choice that brought Kender home. Bullock knocked an RBI single to left, and Chiaravallo moved a runner into scoring position. Swenson increased the Bison’s lead to 10-5 with an RBI double.
In the seventh, Bullock threw a runner out at third base from right field, preventing Davidson from rallying.
In the eighth inning, the Bison possessed a 10-7 lead, and the Wildcats loaded the bases with two outs. Chiaravallo made a game-saving catch to secure the final out of the inning and assist in the win for the Bison. He made a great jump off contact, properly reading the left-center gap and dove to snag the final out and prevent any runs from scoring.
Ben Magovern ’25 came back after missing last season due to injury. He pitched four innings for the Bison with four strikeouts and allowed one run off five hits. Relief pitcher Hadley Maxwell ’26 entered the game with the bases loaded in the seventh, only allowing a two-run single, which brought the score to 10-7. Maxwell struck out three batters and only got hit off twice. He earned his second career save after pitching scoreless innings in the eighth and ninth.
The Orange and Blue scored 10 runs on 14 hits. Bullock, Chiaravallo, Fluharty and Trommer all had two hits, and Facinelli and Fluharty both had two RBIs.
The Bison’s home opener will be played against Saint Joseph’s starting on Saturday, Mar. 1.
