Facing off against Caston for the second straight day, the Triton baseball team found itself in an early 4-0 hole that later turned into an 8-0 deficit. The Trojans were able to rally late, but it was not enough as Triton dropped its second straight Hoosier North Athletic Conference game 8-4.
Outside of a one-out walk, Triton starting pitcher Drew Bingamon had no trouble getting through the top of the Caston order in the first inning. Using some soft contact, Bingamon was able to retire the side with just that one blemish. As for the Trojan hitters, they were sat down in order in the bottom of the first on just five pitches.
The Comets recorded the first hit of the game in the top of the second, as Pete DuVall ripped a liner into left field. As was the case the inning before, DuVall would steal second base to get into scoring position, but he would get know further. Bingamon would settle in, recording his first two strikeouts of the game as well as a pop out to shortstop to turn things over.
After the Trojans were retired in order for the second straight inning, Bingamon took over once more to begin the top of the third. He’d get into some trouble, as two Caston hits and a walk to begin the frame loaded the bases with no outs. The Triton starter responded well to the adversity, striking out the next two hitters. However, a pair of passed balls would lead to two runs coming across for the Comets to break the day. Caston would add two more to their total after three straight errors by the Trojan defense allowed the inning to be extended. Still looking for their first baserunner of the game, Triton now had to find a way to erase a four-run deficit.
The rally wouldn’t come in the bottom of the third, as the Trojans went down 1-2-3 once again. The Comets threated to add on to their lead in the top of the fourth after a pair of walks put a couple of runners on, but Bingamon was able to get out of the jam with a little help from his catcher, Ethan Shively, who threw out a Caston baserunner as he was attempting to steal third. Bingamon would do the rest from there, using his fifth strikeout of the game to get back on offense.

    Sophomore center fielder Brian Wescher of Triton makes a running catch during the fourth inning. Photo by Gary Nieter

The Trojans would finally string something together in the bottom of the fourth, as Jacob Pitney led off the inning with Triton’s first hit of the game. Bingamon would work a walk a batter later to put two men on and give the home side a chance to get on the scoreboard. However, a crisp 1-5-3 double play turned by the Comets would halt the Trojan rally in its tracks, leading to the end of the fourth inning just a batter later.
Bingamon would give his hitters another chance to chip away at the four-run deficit with a clean top of the fifth inning that included two more Ks, his first of the game. In the bottom of the fifth, Zak Greer would use an infield single to reach base for Triton’s second hit of the game, and was then bunted over to second by Isaiah Vaca. He’d reach third on a wild pitch, but would get no further, as the Caston defense would stay flawless and retire the side.
Bingamon’s night on the mound ended after he retired the first batter of the inning. Braxton Kaufman replaced him, and almost immediately got into some trouble. After giving up a hit to the first batter he faced, he would get the second out of the inning with a strikeout, but followed it up with two walks to load the bases. That brought up Lance Hanna for Caston, who drove in two runs with a double down the right field line. Next up was Gavin Mollenkof who went opposite field with a single to bring home two more. When the dust finally settled, the Comets had doubled their lead to 8-0.
Now facing a rather large deficit, Triton was finally able to get onto the scoreboard in the bottom of the sixth. Starting with a one-out single by Bingamon, the Trojan starter stole second base and was brought home by a single by Lucas Kaufman. A pair of walks followed the base knock to load the bases, bringing up Maddox Dennie. The bases wouldn’t stay full for long, as Dennie would clear them on a double to deep center field to add three more runs onto the board. Now with just three outs to work with, the home side had cut the lead in half.
Braxton would give his offense a chance, retiring the side without allowing any more runs to keep his team trailing by four heading into the bottom of the seventh. Outside of walks drawn by Pitney and Lucas, the Trojan offense was unable to muster up anything else. The game ended with two men left on base.
Triton (2-4, 0-2 HNAC) is back in action Thursday against North Miami.