Clayton, Mo. - The Thunder baseball team kicked off its 2023 season on Friday afternoon, falling in a 10-5 defeat to Fontbonne University. Wheaton will continue its opening weekend of action on Saturday when the Thunder face the Greenville Panthers for a doubleheader beginning at noon.

Wheaton tallied seven hits to score five runs while committing two errors on Friday. The Griffins (3-3) scored 10 runs on 13 hits with a clean defensive day. Brendan Dyer took the loss on the mound, surrendering five earned runs on five hits and five walks while striking out six in three innings of work. Jared Kloth followed two innings of work on the mound, allowing three earned runs on four hits and walk. Caleb VanKerhoff allowed two runs on four hits with one strikeout over the final three innings.

Fontbonne struck quickly in the bottom of the first inning with two hits and walk in the first three batters of the game to take a 2-0 lead before Dyer cut down the rally with three straight strikeouts to end the inning. Wheaton would answer in the top of the second when Mathias Haggerty led off the inning with a single and scored three batters later on Mason Diel's groundout. Dyer worked out of trouble in the bottom of the second inning, using a pickoff to erase an error and then stranding the bases loaded with back-to-back strikeouts to end the inning.

Wheaton would take its first lead in the top of the fourth inning when Jacob Snyder singled and stole second base before trotting home on Joe Klein's two-run home run. Diel followed with a triple to right field and scored on a squeeze bunt by Tyler Weiner to put the Thunder ahead 4-2. Fontbonne answered quickly in the bottom of the fourth, striking for five runs on five hits and one error while also stealing three bases to give the Griffins a 7-4 edge.

Fontbonne extended its lead with individual runs in the bottom of the fifth and sixth innings to lead 9-4, but Wheaton pulled closer in the top of the seventh inning with Haggerty doubled to left to score Kyle Wu. The Griffins would add an insurance run in the bottom of the eighth inning to account for the 10-5 final score.

Matthias Haggery led the Thunder offesne with two hits and a walk. Klein's home run accounted for both of his team-high two runs batted in. Harrison Stanton coaxed a pair of Wheaton's six drawn walks.