GRANVILLE, Ohio (April 25, 2024) – The No. 2 Denison University baseball team hosted Marietta College and got a two-run home run from Noah Leib in the bottom of the first inning en route to a 5-2 win over the Pioneers on Thursday night.

It was the first season sweep for Denison (30-4 overall) over Marietta (17-16) since 2018, and it is the quickest the Big Red have reached the 30-win mark in a season in program history.

After Peter Lemke got back-to-back swinging strikeouts to end the top of the first inning, Denison got a one-out single to left field by Eric Colaco followed by a two-run home run on an absolute blast to right field by Leib in the bottom of the first.

Lemke again got back-to-back swinging strikeouts to end the top of the second inning, and then Jack Rollo entered in the third inning as the Big Red opted for a bullpen game from the pitching staff.

Colaco led off the bottom of the third inning with a triple to right center field, and then after a one-out walk by Jack Steel, Steel went in motion as Jake Welsch sent an RBI-single through the right side behind Steel, scoring Colaco and moving Steel to third base. That led to a to sacrifice fly to right field by Owen Wilson to score Steel and make it 4-0 Big Red.

Denison made it 5-0 in the bottom of the fifth inning after a two-out double to right field by Wilson was followed by an RBI-single also to right field by Cade Nowik.

Rollo pitched a 1-2-3 top of the fourth inning and finished with 3.1 innings pitched allowing two hits and one unearned run.

Michael Gray then pitched a 1-2-3 top of the seventh inning, and George Viebrock later came on with two runners on base with one out in a 5-2 game in the top of the eighth inning and got a flyout to right field and a fielder's choice to second base to get out of the inning.

Viebrock would work around a leadoff hit by pitch in the top of the ninth inning with back-to-back strikeouts and a groundout to third base to pick up his fifth save of the season.

Welsch finished 3-for-4 to lead the Big Red offense while Colaco was 2-for-2 with two runs scored and two walks.

In two days, a big North Coast Athletic Conference series against Wittenberg University (20-12 overall, 9-1 NCAC) looms as the Big Red face the Tigers starting at 12 p.m. on Saturday, April 27, in Springfield, Ohio.