CARY, N.C. - The Slippery Rock University baseball team opened its 2025 season with a doubleheader sweep of Kutztown University Friday at the USA Baseball Training Complex in Cary, North Carolina.
 
After cruising to a 9-1 victory in game one, Slippery Rock rallied for a 9-5 victory to secure the season-opening sweep in game two. The back-to-back victories mark the third time in the last four seasons that SRU has begun the year with a 2-0 record.  
 
The quartet of Treston Nemeth, Tyler Cerame, Jimmy Sadler and Cam Panyko Morris all had hits in both legs of Friday's doubleheader.
 
Nemeth, a transfer catcher from the University of Dayton who was playing in his first games for The Rock, was 3-for-4 with two runs scored and one RBI while drawing three walks and reaching base a seventh time after being hit by a pitch in what was a strong debut series.
 
Cerame, a second-year Rock shortstop, went a combined 3-for-7 with five runs scored, one home run and three RBI over the doubleheader.
 
Sadler, a third baseman from Potomac State who like Nemeth was playing in his first games for The Rock, had two hits, two RBI, two stolen bases and one run on the night.
 
One of 11 seniors on this year's roster, Panyko Morris, who is entering his second season as The Rock's starting centerfielder, drove in three runs on his two hits while scoring another.

GAME ONE: SRU 9 – KU 1
Behind a great season-opening start on the mound by Gage Gillott, Slippery Rock jumped out to an early lead and never looked back en route to a 9-1 victory.
 
Gillott, a preseason All-America honoree, allowed just one run on three hits and four walks over five innings alongside six strikeouts to pick up his eighth victory in just his 13th appearance on the mound in his Slippery Rock career.
 
Michael Kitko pitched two shutout innings that coincided with four strikeouts in relief of Gillott in the game's later stages after going 1-for-3 with one run, three RBI, a walk and a double in the batting order.
 
SRU wasted little time getting its bats started as The Rock loaded the bases in the first inning before Kitko drew a walk to bring in Joe Purcell for the inaugural run of the 2025 season. Slippery Rock added another run before KU starter Kannon Zdimal could get out of the first.
 
Kutztown did get one run back in the bottom half of the inning, before the combination of Gillott and Kitko proceeded to silence the Golden Bears with six consecutive shutout innings.
 
While they turned out not to be needed, Slippery Rock added seven insurance runs down the stretch starting in the fifth inning with a solo home run by Cerame followed by a six-run sixth inning which blew the game open. All six runs came with two outs in the frame and was highlighted by back-to-back two-run hits from Kitko and Panyko Morris.
 
Cerame went 2-for-3 with three runs, two RBI, his first home run in a Rock uniform and a walk in the opener. Nemeth reached base four times as part of a 2-for-2, one-run, two-walk showing.
 
Purcell, (1-for-3, 2 runs, 1 walk), Kitko (1-for-3, 1 run, 3 RBI, 1 walk) and Sadler (1-for-3, 1 run, 1 walk, 1 stolen base) all reached base multiple times in the win as well while Robert Herr supplied The Rock with one RBI and one run.
 
Zdimal (0-1) was the pitcher of record for Kutztown. He gave up just the two runs in the top of the first while pitching 3.2 innings. Tyler Cleveland was charged with seven earned runs on seven hits and two walks over 3.1 innings out of the KU bullpen.

GAME TWO: SRU 9 – KU 5
Slippery Rock found itself trailing after four innings before a monster six-run sixth paved the way for a 9-5 comeback victory in game two.
 
The Rock's comeback bid began in the fourth inning. Losing 4-2, SRU cut into its deficit with one run thanks to Brandon Butler who shot a single into left field which scored Gillott from third base to make it a one-run contest.
 
The comeback was promptly completed the following inning when The Rock exploded for the aforementioned six runs as part of an inning that was highlighted by consecutive two-run hits from Sadler and fellow newcomer Clay Wiesen.  
 
With Slippery Rock's bats busy piling up runs during the rally, it was veteran reliever Mark Wilbur (1-0) who was responsible for shutting down the Kutztown lineup. Wilbur entered the game for stater Nate Malak in the fourth inning and threw four innings of near perfect baseball.
 
Wilbur did not yield a hit in his first three innings of the night as Kutztown never truly got the senior until there were two outs in seventh. Even then he was able to work out of a jam and close out the victory by giving up just one run.
 
All told, Wilbur struck out six batters with just one unearned run allowed on one hit and one walk. Prior to Wilbur's appearance, Malak pitched three innings with four runs surrendered on five hits. He matched Wilbur with six strikeouts of his own.  
 
The Rock's offense used a true team-effort to get back into the game with six different athletes being responsible for the SRU's six hits in game two.  
 
Kutztown starter Cody Barberio (0-1) took the loss for the Golden Bears. He gave up six runs on four hits and two walks in four innings.
 
Slippery Rock continues its season-opening weekend with a nine-inning game 4:30 p.m. Saturday against Frostburg State University at the USA Baseball Training Complex.




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