Two Homers from Reifsnider Clinches Series for Dukes Against William & Mary

Saturday, April 23

Harrisonburg, Va.

4 p.m.

James Madison University

22-17, 8-6

William & Mary

17-18, 7-7

William & Mary

James Madison

Two Homers from Reifsnider Clinches Series for Dukes Against William & Mary

4/23/2022 8:06:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score Photo Gallery

HARRISONBURG, Va. – A night after just missing a walk off home run, redshirt junior Travis Reifsnider hit his second multi-home run game of the season in a 4-1 victory to clinch the series for James Madison baseball against William & Mary on Saturday afternoon at Veterans Memorial Park.

The Dukes have won three in a row and are now 22-17, 8-6, while the Tribe drops to 17-18, 7-7.

Redshirt senior Liam McDonnell tied a career-high with six innings of work, becoming the first Duke to win his first six decisions of the season since Kevin Munson in 2010. Classmate Lliam Grubbs earned his third save of the season and 10^th of his career, becoming the eighth Duke all-time to hit double-digit career saves. Reifsnider tied a career-high, going 3-for-4 with two home runs and three RBI's to lead the Dukes at the plate.

How It Happened
The game began with a double by the first batter of the game, as Matt Thomas later came around to score on a ground out to give the Tribe a 1-0 lead.

Reifsnider responded in the third inning, as he landed a 1-1 pitch off the left field foul pole with two outs to tie the game at one. McDonnell sent the Tribe down in order in the fourth and then worked around a double in the fifth to keep the game knotted at one.

In the bottom of the fifth, redshirt junior Trevon Dabney led off the inning with a perfectly placed bunt for a single. Two at bats later, Reifsnider stepped up and pulled the second pitch he saw over the right field wall to give the Dukes a 3-1 lead. The two-homer outing is his second of the season, with his first coming eight days prior against Northeastern. Freshman Fenwick Trimble then stepped up and hit a home run himself, giving the Dukes their first back-to-back home runs since Reifsnider and Jensen Lapoint last season at VMI.

Redshirt sophomore Hunter Entsminger worked a pair of scoreless innings, fanning three, before Grubbs stepped onto the mound in the ninth. The Tribe were able to push a runner to third, but Grubbs preserved the 4-1 win to clinch the series. Grubbs is now tied for sixth in career saves all-time at JMU, joining Casey Brookens (1993-96) and Chris Huffman (2011-13) at 10.

Game Notes

Liam McDonnell is the first JMU pitcher to win his first six decisions of a season in starts since Turner Phelps in 2009. All of Kevin Munson's decisions were in relief appearances.
Kyle Novak's 35-game on-base streak came to a close.
Trevon Dabney was hit by a pitch for the 22^nd time this season.

Up Next
The Dukes and the Tribe close out the weekend with a 1 p.m. game on Sunday, April 23 at Veterans Memorial Park. The game will be streamed on FloSports.