PASADENA (Mar. 13, 2020) – The Caltech baseball team engaged with Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges in a bittersweet and far too early 2020 finale to properly bid farewell to both program's departing seniors following Thursday's news from the SCIAC that spring athletics would conclude at the end of the weekend. 

Prior to the game, Caltech honored its three senior members, Grant Messner (Lake Forest, Ill. / Lake Forest), Cortland Perry (New York, N.Y. / The Dalton School) and Alex Wuschner (Farmington, Conn. / Farmington) in a pre-game ceremony as well as a chance for all seniors of the spring season to receive recognition for their tireless work in helping each of their respective programs evolve over the course of their four-year careers.

When the action turned to the diamond, the Beavers proved ready to weather the storm, both figuratively and literally. While CMS managed to jump out to a 4-0 lead, a massive third inning would later stake Caltech to a two-run lead. Perry, the Beavers' leadoff hitter for much of his time in Pasadena, set the table with a single to begin the inning before hard-hitting junior Mitchell Watson (Windsor, Colo. / Windsor) knocked him in with a double down the left-field line. Classmate Dillon Holder (New York, NY / Horace Mann), who came into the day as one of three Caltech players with a batting average over .300, proceeded to score Watson with a single up the middle that cut the Stags' lead to just two runs. From there, freshman Jack Warren (Foster City, Calif. / San Mateo) and sophomore Dawson Beutler (Omaha, Neb. / Millard West), Caltech's starting pitcher for the day, helped load the bases for freshman Darren Rhodes (Waco, Texas / Midway) with a single into left field and a walk. Rhodes went on to have one of the team's most impactful at-bats of the season, hitting his first career home run - a grand slam, no less - over the left-field wall to consummate the home team's lead. The rookie infielder would be mobbed his teammates upon crossing home plate, setting the Beavers up nicely for the innings to follow.

On the mound, Beutler struck out two Stags in nearly three innings of work, and sophomore Pierce Governale also pitched well in the ensuing innings before succumbing to injury. Freshmen Danny Collinson (West Chester, Pa. / Henderson) and Arya Mevada (Marietta, Ga. / Wheeler) followed Governale into the game, bridging the gap between Governale and Messner, who was effectively wild in the final appearance of his career. After the Stags scratched three runs across in the sixth inning to regain the lead, Messner pitched himself out trouble in the seventh where he recorded a pair of strikeouts and a lineout to end his career on a high note. 

The final two innings of the game belonged to Perry, who put his full arsenal on display in one of the strongest appearances of his career. Without surrendering a single baserunner, Perry got two Stags to chase in the eighth inning before putting two more away looking in the ninth, including the final batter he faced. Meanwhile, the Beavers offense came back to life as the rain began to intensify. Two hit batsmen, including one on senior Wuschner loaded the bases for sophomore Will Cook (El Segundo, Calif. / Windward School), who proceeded to bat in classmate Ryan Ruscansky (Annandale, N.J. / North Hunterdon) before the inning came to an end. However, Perry led off the bottom-of-the-ninth and consummated his big day by reaching second on an error after the right fielder dropped the ball in the pouring rain. After advancing to third, Perry would score one last time for the Beavers, reaching home in routine fashion on a wild pitch.

Head Coach Kevin Whitehead and the Beavers close the shortened season with two victories, one of which came in conference play. As much promise as the team showed in 2020, the Beavers will happy to get players such as sophomore Max Popken (Westport, Conn. / Staples) and freshman Will Dembski (Pella, Iowa / Pella Christian) back on a full-time basis next season, both of whom made a tremendous impact on the team as freshmen. For now, the Beavers will say goodbye to North Field and the 2020 baseball season, but not without plenty of optimism for what is poised to be a brighter future.

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