PICTURED ABOVE: Brett Albaugh's three-run home run in the top of the first inning opened the scoring in Wheaton's 8-4 victory at Carroll on Friday night.

Waukesha, Wis. - The Thunder baseball team used the long ball to cruise to an 8-4 victory at Carroll on Friday night. Wheaton spoiled the home opener for the Pioneers with three home runs in the first four innings to improve to 13-10 on the season and 3-4 in CCIW play. Carroll is now 5-14 overall and 1-4 in conference play. The two teams will conclude their three-game series with a doubleheader at Lee Pfund Stadium on April 14. Wheaton will return to action on Saturday with a 2 pm doubleheader at North Park.

Wheaton tallied eight runs on 12 hits with three errors while Carroll scored four runs on 10 hits with one error. Alex Hanvey earned his first career victory on the mound for the Thunder, scattering six hits and striking out three in five innings of work. Caleb Selk earned the save, throwing four innings and allowing four runs, two earned, while striking out one batter. Carroll's Carter Howard took the loss, allowing seven runs on nine hits in four innings of work.

Nick Mailman set the tone for the Thunder offense with a ringing single up the middle on the second pitch of the game and immediately stole second base. A Peter Newman single put runners on the corners before Brett Albaugh drove a towering three-run home run off the scoreboard in right-center field to give the Thunder a 3-0 lead. John McKenna led off the top of the second inning with a solo home run and Seth Meyer followed with a double to left-center field. Two batters later, Meyer came in to score on a squeeze bunt by Jacob Zeller to put Wheaton ahead 5-0.

Wheaton left two runners on base in the second and third innings but dented the scoreboard again in the top of the fourth inning when Zeller led off with a single and Newman followed with a line drive home run to right field to put Wheaton ahead 7-0. Wheaton would go on to load the bases in the top of the fourth inning but could not manage any further damage against the Pioneers.

Carroll got on the scoreboard with an unearned run in the bottom of the seventh inning but Wheaton answered in the top of the eighth inning when Johnny Peltz scored on Ben Brittain's second double of the game. Carroll would add two runs in the bottom of the eighth and another in the bottom of the ninth to close the final score to 8-4.

Zeller, Newman, Albaugh and Brittain led the Thunder offense with two hits apiece. Albaugh drove in three runs with Newman plating a pair of runs and scoring two runs.