Story courtesy of The Citadel sports information
The Citadel 8, Hofstra 7
Charleston, S.C. - Citadel shortstop Matt Matulia pushed across the winning run in the bottom of the ninth to end the offensive battle with Hofstra Tuesday afternoon at Riley Park. He ripped an RBI-single up the middle to plate second baseman Tripp Cappelmann to give the Dogs an 8-7 victory.
Hofstra (0-7) took an early 2-0 lead in the first frame as Ricky Caputo smacked a two-run jack over the wall in left center, his first of the season. The Citadel (3-2) cut the lead in half in the bottom of the inning as left fielder Chris Swauger tallied an RBI-groundout to send center fielder Trent Weathers home.
The Pride kept it 2-1 going into the fifth before the Bulldogs exploded for five runs to go ahead, 6-1. Weathers laced a triple off the left field wall to plate two as second baseman Conrad Kellahan smacked a base hit up the middle that allowed Weathers to trot home. Matulia earned an RBI-groundout before Brown lined a single up the middle to give the Bulldogs a five run lead.
Caputo smashed his second dinger of the game in the top of the sixth before the Pride added four more in the seventh to take a one-run lead. All the Pride's runs came on RBI-singles. Tom Caltabiano, Josh Stern, Caputo and Anthony Sarno each registered an RBI to make it 7-6.
The Dogs answered back in their half of the inning as Brown brought Kellahan across the dish with an RBI-single of his own to tie it up before Matulia earned the game-winning hit in the ninth.
Junior closer Link Saunders picked up his first win of the season as he tossed two frames, scattering three hits. Saunders has now pitched 11.1 scoreless innings, dating back to the end of 2005. Pride reliever Jeff Denlea fell to 0-2 in his fourth appearance of the year as he went two-thirds of an inning, allowing one run on one hit.
Junior Zach Brown made his first start since 2004 as he pitched six frames, giving up three runs on four hits and striking out four. Last year, Brown only had 3.2 innings of work in five appearances, all in relief. The Greenville, S.C.-native was also a threat at the plate as he had a 3-for-4 day with two RBI.
Sophomore Conrad Kellahan made his first collegiate start as a Bulldog. Kellahan was 2-for-4, including one RBI and two runs.
Leading the Pride was Caputo and Stern as they combined for five of Hofstra's seven runs. They both went 3-for-5 as Caputo jacked two homers and registered three RBI. Stern tallied one RBI and scored twice.
The Citadel and Hofstra will face off Wednesday, Feb. 22 at 3 p.m. in Riley Park for the second and final game of the series.
Story courtesy of UNC Greensboro sports information
UNC Greensboro 8, High Point 7
HIGH POINT, NC ? Patrick Currin pitched four scoreless innings in relief and UNC Greensboro scored four eighth inning runs as the Spartans bested High Point 8-7 Tuesday afternoon at George S. Erath Field on the High Point campus.
With the win, the Spartans (1-3, 0-0 SoCon) won their eighth consecutive game against their in-state rivals and claimed their first win of the season after dropping three games at Georgia over the weekend.
The Spartans, who trailed the majority of the game, erupted for four runs in the top of the eight to seize a one run lead. Mike Mongiello started the rally with a double to left and Brandon Harvey followed with a single to left to put runners on the corners with just one out. Logan Smith then reached on an error at third, driving in Mongiello and collecting his third RBI of the day in the process.
Greg Matson then tied the game at seven runs apiece when he smacked a double to left field to score both Smith and Harvey. Jermaine Mitchell struck next, putting UNCG out in front for good as the Daingerfield, TX native smoked a single to left to score Matson.
Currin (1-1), who earned his first win of the season, made short work of the Panthers in the ninth as he allowed just a single with two outs already recorded. He finished the game allowing just two hits in his four innings on the hill.
UNCG grabbed an early two run lead in the top half of the third when the Spartans capitalized on three Panther errors. Harvey opened the frame by reaching on an error by the shortstop and later made it to second on a failed pickoff attempt by High Point starting pitcher Matt Christie. Smith plated Harvey with a single and then advanced to second base on an error by center fielder Ryan Laboy. Mitchell produced the next run as he singled to left to plate Harvey from second.
High Point quickly regained the lead in their half of the third as UNCG committed three errors leading to three Panther unearned runs. After UNCG scored a run in the fourth on an RBI single from Harvey, High Point scored runs in the fourth and fifth to stretch its lead to 7-3.
Smith collected another RBI in the sixth as the Charlotte, NC product singled home Mongiello on a hit through the right side before the Spartans mounted their eighth inning comeback.
Chris Marks (2-1) suffered the loss after failing to record an out in the eighth inning. The right-hander finished the game allowing two runs on two hits.
Smith led UNCG with a 2-for-3 with three RBI afternoon at the plate. Mitchell, Mongiello and Harvey each had two hits for the Spartans. Chris Norwood and Dustin Holtzman each had three hits for the Panthers.
UNCG returns to action Friday evening when the Spartans travel to College Station, TX to take part in the Domino’s Pizza Aggie Classic hosted by Texas A&M. The Spartans open the event with an 8 p.m. matchup with the host Aggies before later taking on Missouri State and Utah.
Story courtesy of Georgia Southern sports information
Jacksonville 5, Georgia Southern 2
STATESBORO, Ga. ? Georgia Southern’s pitching staff combined to strikeout 11 Jacksonville batters, but a 3-run fourth inning by the Dolphins keyed their 5-2 win Tuesday at J.I. Clements Stadium. The Eagles (4-5 overall) saw their winning streak end at three straight.
In the first, Brett Pelfrey lined a one-out single then took third on Greg Dowling’s single to center. Griffin Benedict hit a line drive to centerfield, deep enough to score Pelfrey giving the Eagles a 1-0 lead.
The Dolphins’ Mike McCallister hit his team-leading fourth home run, a solo shot in the second that tied the game. JU (8-1) took the lead for good in the fourth.
Thomas LePage hit a RBI single making it 2-1. McCallister reached on Jeremy Beckham’s throwing error, which allowed another run to score. Matt Lopez’s sacrifice fly plated another for a 4-1 lead. Pete Clifford sent a RBI double down the right field line in the fifth, extending their lead to 5-1.
Dowling sent a single up the middle to start the sixth. Benedict followed with a double in the left field gap. Will Southwell grounded out, allowing Dowling to score, but the Eagles could not push another run across. Pinch-hitting Jeremiah Parker, making his first appearance in nearly two weeks, struck out looking to end the frame.
During the sixth and eighth inning the Eagles sent the tying run to the plate but could not score. The pitching staff recorded 11 Ks and walked just two while allowing just five hits, the third straight game giving up five or fewer hits.
Making his first collegiate start, Austin Chambliss (1-1) fanned two batters in four innings. He was charged for four runs (two earned) off three hits. A.J. Battisto gave up one run in three innings while striking out a career-high five. Everett Teaford and David Cogswell both struck out a pair in an inning of work.
“We wasted a strong effort from our bullpen. Jacksonville is playing really well right now. The three run inning was the difference in the game - a walk, hit by pitch and two plays we don’t make. You can’t expect to beat a team like Jacksonville making those mistakes,” said head coach Rodney Hennon.
Dowling recorded two of the Eagles’ six hits.
Logan James tallied two of the Dolphins’ five hits and scored a run. D.J. Ackley (2-1) allowed two runs on five hits in six innings. He walked two and struck out four. Aaron Parvey picked up his first save, throwing 1-hit ball over the final three innings.
Georgia Southern concludes its nine-game homestand this weekend, hosting Marshall in a three-game set. Friday’s (Feb. 24) first pitch is scheduled for 7 p.m. with 1:30 p.m. starts on Saturday and Sunday.
Story courtesy of Appalachian State sports information
Appalachian State 4, Gardner-Webb 4 (Halted, Top of 13)
BOILING SPRINGS, N.C. ? Tuesday’s baseball game between Appalachian State University and Gardner-Webb was halted in the top of the 13th inning due to darkness with the score knotted at 4-4. The contest will resume in Boone on Tuesday, March 28 beginning at 2 p.m., immediately followed by the second scheduled meeting of the season between ASU and GWU.
Strong pitching performances by true freshmen Jason Rook and Zach Quate highlighted the afternoon for Appalachian. Making his first-career start, Rook didn’t allow an earned run over five innings of work and left the contest in line for a win as the Mountaineers jumped out to an early 2-1 lead. The right-hander gave up just four hits and struck out six while throwing 54 of his 83 pitches for strikes.
Appalachian extended its advantage to 4-1 with single runs in the seventh and eighth innings, but Gardner-Webb countered with a pair of runs off ASU junior Jonathan Reeder in the eighth and a single tally in the ninth versus senior southpaw Josh Fish.
The Mountaineers stymied GWU’s chance to win the game in the bottom of the ninth when Travis Hunnicutt, a late-inning replacement in center field, gunned down the potential winning run at third base for the first out of the inning.
Following Hunnicutt’s heroics, Quate came on for 3.2 spectacular innings of relief, as the right-hander allowed just two hits to send the game into the 13th still tied at 4-4.
ASU had a chance to plate the go-ahead run in the top of the 11th, but GWU left fielder Joey Testa returned the favor to Hunnicutt by making a perfect throw to nail the junior at the plate.
Senior Kevin Butler went 3-for-4 with an RBI and caught all 12 innings for the Mountaineers, while freshman Wes Borden and Nick DeRose also added three hits apiece to lead the Apps’ 15-hit attack.
Appalachian returns to action on Saturday when it travels to Davidson, N.C. to face a pair of non-conference foes from the state of New York. The Mountaineers square off with Army at noon, followed by a 3 p.m. matchup with Niagara.