TU Topples SAU to Set Fastest 25-Game Start in Program History

SPRING ARBOR, Mich. – Saturday was another day, another 36 runs put on the board for No. 18 Taylor (21-4, 12-0 CL) as it defeated Spring Arbor (12-9, 5-5) by finals of 21-0 and 15-9 to extend its winning streak to 16 games, a span that includes three four-game sweeps over Crossroads League opponents.

The 21-4 mark for TU is the best 25-game start for the program under 21st-year head coach Kyle Gould, surpassing the team's 20-5 record to open an eventual 44-win 2018 season. The 16 games won in a row matches the program's longest streak since its record-24-game winning streak in 2011.

While the Trojan offense grabbed the headlines by crossing home plate 71 times during the series versus SAU, Wes Hunt (2-1) and the bullpen arms of Gage Gongwer and Lane Lewis made sure much of the offensive production was not needed in Saturday's opener.

Hunt threw the day's first four innings, striking out three Cougars while allowing two hits and a walk. Gongwer had two strikeouts as he completed the next two frames without allowing a hit, and Lewis preserved the combined shutout with a clean seventh inning by punching out the final two batters he faced.

Meanwhile, TU held a lead from the game's leadoff batter onward, as Mason David sent a ball over the right-field wall for his seventh homer of the year.

Ben Kennedy also went the other way for a three-run home run in the second to match the junior's career-high, season-long tally of five homers through only 24 games played in 2025. TU tacked on another run in the frame from a rocketed double to center field by Kaleb Kolpien to pull ahead 5-0.

Brayden Manning, Sam Gladd and Fletcher Roemmich each had run-producing hits in the fourth inning by the time David had stepped up to the dish for a two-run single in that same frame to give the Trojans a 12-0 lead.

David then launched a three-run shot in the sixth inning as part of a 3-for-3, six-RBI game with two walks and four runs scored for the reigning CL Player of the Year.

Taylor's bench continued the strong production late in the contest, as Chase Long, Drew Loy and Hobie Raikes collected RBIs in the seventh inning to complete the 21-0 rout.

The series finale had a similar start to game three when Sam Gladd's first-inning, two-run homer ensured the Trojans would hold a lead in every one of the 28 half-innings they played Saturday.

An avalanche of errors and hits in the second and third frames gave TU a large cushion, helped by a two-RBI single from Ryan Sommer and an RBI hit from David.

Still in the third inning, Kolpien put the Trojans in front 10-0 with a three-run shot. The senior's doubleheader included five RBIs and another pair of two-hit games, giving Kolpien an astounding nine consecutive multi-hit games in which he has recorded at least one at-bat.

After SAU scored its first run Saturday, Taylor responded with a five-run fourth frame where Rylee Singleton, David and Manning recorded RBIs on a single, double and sacrifice fly, respectively, to grab a 15-1 lead.

On the mound, Jake Boyer worked effectively through three innings without allowing an earned run while striking out five before running into trouble in the fourth frame.

Nathan Frady (1-0) completed the fourth and fifth innings to earn the win as he struck out three Cougars, and Dalton Swinehart racked up four strikeouts as he finished the day.

Individually, David became the eighth Trojan in program history to reach 150 career RBIs Saturday, while Gladd's 12 homers in 2025 kept him in a tie for the third-most dingers in the NAIA.

No. 18 Taylor returns to Winterholter Field on Friday, March 21, to face Mount Vernon Nazarene (16-6, 6-4 CL) beginning at 3 p.m. A win in the opener would give Taylor its longest winning streak in 14 seasons.