FORT MYERS, Fla. – The Otterbein baseball team continued its positive momentum into the weekend and finished its spring trip on the right note, beating Augustana (Ill.) and Carroll (Wisc.) to culminate time at the Gene Cusic Collegiate Classic.

The Cardinals, working their way back to a 7-5 overall record on the season, will head back to Ohio late Sunday night and get back to classes. A big regional showdown with Denison is scheduled for Tuesday afternoon, followed by a three-game set in Lexington, Ky. coming up next weekend.

Saturday vs. Augustana (3-1 Win):
The Cards jumped ahead early, as right fielder Sam Edgell began atoning for a tough outing the day before with and RBI-single in the first inning.

Augustana countered back in the bottom half after leadoff man Jacob Barker nearly got rung up on a nasty breaking ball from Collin Hoffmann in a 1-2 count. Barker eventually worked the count full, and launched a fastball down the left-field line for a solo home run.

The contest settled into a dogfight from that point as Hoffmann and Viking right-hander Sam Cregan began sitting batters down. The Cards saw their share of opportunities but kept leaving runners on base.

Edgell came up timely again in the seventh, finding a way to make contact for a two-strike, two-out single into shallow center field that brought around Gino Pierro again, this time for a 2-1 lead. Hoffmann then fired a clean bottom half, eventually exiting with just that one small blemish in the opening frame. He tallied 12 strikeouts on the day, 11 coming in the first five innings.

Otterbein got into trouble in the eighth as Augustana loaded the bases with no outs. Sophomore lefty Travis Burson came on to play the role of hero, striking out the first two hitters and then inducing a flyout that erupted his teammates from the dugout. Burson reacted with a scream and massive fist-pump to the roar of fans.

The Cards found a key insurance run in the ninth, and Burson came back out to finish the job for his first career save. Hoffmann moved into second on the program's all-time record list for most appearances while also earning his 20th career win.

Pierro was the standout offensively, going 4 for 4 with three doubles and also walking to reach base all five times. He stole two bases and came around to score all three Otterbein runs.

Sunday vs. Carroll (12-4 Win):
A scoreless first inning would be the only time Otterbein was not ahead, as the Cards methodically added runs in every frame from there on out. Just as Edgell against Augustana, catcher Adam Stotler took advantage of opportunities to atone by lacing a two-run double in the second and getting his squad on the board.

The Cards added RBI-singles from Ryan Mitchell, Luke Barber and Brayden Carter in the ensuing at-bats and coasted to victory down the stretch. Sophomore Travis Engard provided a third quality start this season, cruising through six frames before walking a few batters to face trouble in the seventh.

Classmate Zach Beatty came on to take it the rest of the way, helping Engard grab his first win of the spring despite his paper stat line not looking as dominant as the in-person performance. Six players tallied multi-hit efforts, led by a 3 for 4 showing from Mitchell.

Edgell currently leads the club with a .383 average and 33 total bases, while Mitchell and Stotler have both registered a team-high 12 walks.