Story courtesy of Appalachian State sports information
College of Charleston 8, Appalachian State 2
BOONE, N.C. ? College of Charleston’s Nick Chigges held Appalachian State University baseball to just five hits over eight innings to hand Appalachian an 8-2 setback on Saturday afternoon at Red Lackey Field. The loss was the Mountaineers’ eighth-straight versus Charleston and fourth-consecutive overall.
College of Charleston jumped out to a 3-0 lead after just an inning-and-a-half, but Rand Smith’s two-out RBI double down the right field line in the second and Kevin Butler’s solo homer in the third cut the ASU deficit to 3-2 heading into the fourth.
However, that would be the only runs that Appalachian (9-9, 0-2 SoCon) would manage against Chigges, who scattered five hits and struck out seven over eight innings of work to move to 3-1 with a 1.45 ERA on the season. The right-hander also benefited from strong glove-work behind him, as the Cougars made several impressive plays in the field to steal hits away from the Mountaineers throughout the course of the ballgame.
Charleston (16-4, 2-0 SoCon) added two runs in the fourth, one in the fifth and two more in the seventh to secure its ninth win in its past 10 games. Designated hitter Clay McCord went 3-for-4 with a double, home run and four RBI to lead C of C’s 10-hit attack.
Appalachian was led by Smith’s 2-for-4 performance at the plate. Jonathan Reeder (1-1) allowed six runs on nine hits in six innings of work to suffer his first loss of the season.
The two teams conclude their three-game series on Sunday at 1 p.m. at Red Lackey Field.
Story courtesy of Wofford sports information
Wofford 3-8, IPFW 2-4
SPARTANBURG, SC ? Wofford swept a doubleheader from Indiana-Purdue University at Fort Wayne on Saturday afternoon at Russell C. King Field. The Terriers won the opener 3-2 behind Austin Redwine’s career-high 11 strikeouts. Wofford exploded for six runs in the second inning to take the nightcap 8-4.
The wins marked Wofford’s fifth doubleheader sweep of the season.
Redwine went 6 and 1/3 innings and scattered four hits while walking just one. He struck out the side in the first, third and fifth innings and carried a perfect game through the first four innings. Nick Millspaugh singled to lead off the fifth to become the Mastodons’ first base runner.
Wofford claimed a 1-0 lead in the second when Stephen Johnson singled and moved to third on a double by Keith Munns. Johnson scored on an infield ground out by Brent Pearce.
IPFW tied the game in the sixth. Ryan Keena singled before stealing second and third. He scored on a single by Brent Alwine.
The Terriers won the game with a pair of runs in the sixth. Adam Wood and Shane Kirkley started the inning with singles to left. John Brandt’s sacrifice bunt moved the runners to second and third before Johnson was intentionally walked to load the bases. Munns sent a grounder to third and Tyler Fowler’s to home plate was in the dirt, allowing Wood to score. Chuck Eller grounded out to score Kirkley and give Wofford a 3-1 lead.
The Mastodons added a solo run in the seventh. Fowler walked and Wofford closer J.D. Melton replaced Redwine. Melton allowed a single by Chris Venvertloh that moved Fowler to third. An infield error by the Terriers allowed Fowler to score. Melton then retired Tim Nichting on a line drive to second to earn his sixth save of the year.
Redwine improved to a team-best 5-1 with the win.
In the nightcap, the Terriers took a 1-0 lead in the first when leadoff hitter Bradford Eaves reached on an infield error. After stealing second, he scored on a double by Brandt.
Wofford exploded for six runs on four hits in the second. Ben Austin and Adam Wood each drove in a run with singles. Eaves knocked in a run on a fielders choice and Kirkley smacked a sacrifice fly. Brandt added a two-run homer, his team-leading sixth of the season.
Wofford starter Dawson Smith sailed through the first five innings, yielding just three hits while walking three and striking out three. Ryan Beaton took over in the sixth and allowed IPFW four runs on a pair of hits and three walks. Caleb Smith drove home two runs with a single while Brent Doty and Nick Diem each drew bases loaded walks.
Melton came on and closed out the sixth and pitched a perfect seventh inning to earn his second save of the day and his seventh of the year.
Chuck Eller tripled and scored on a run-down play to add an insurance run in the sixth for the Terriers.
Wofford is now 15-8 on the season while IPFW falls to 6-8. The two teams will conclude the three-game series with a single game at noon on Sunday at King Field.
Story courtesy of UNC Greensboro sports information
Albany 8, UNC Greensboro 3
GREENSBORO, NC ? Albany scored eight unanswered runs as the Great Danes evened up a three-game series at one game apiece with an 8-3 win over UNC Greensboro Saturday afternoon at UNCG Baseball Stadium.
UNCG (5-14) took an early 2-0 lead after plating a pair of runs in the bottom half of the first inning. Shane Thompson led off the frame with a walk and advanced to second when Jermaine Mitchell followed with a single to rightfield to extend his hitting streak to 13 games. Guy Welsh then picked up his team-leading 14th RBI of the season with a single to centerfield to score Thompson. The Spartans added another run with a double steal when Welsh swiped second and Mitchell stole home.
Albany (4-11) collected its first run of the afternoon in the top half of the third when second baseman Al Barbato hit a sacrifice fly to score Rashad Barksdale who triple to left-centerfield before him. The Great Danes tied the game in the fourth on an RBI single from centerfielder Brad Daniels, and then took the lead in the fifth on a two-out RBI single courtesy of Steve Wyland.
Catcher Tom Hill crushed a two-run home run off the rightfield wall in the top of the seventh to highlight a three-run inning for the Great Danes. Albany added another two runs in the top of the eighth on an RBI single by Daniels and scored a second run on a wild pitch to take an 8-2 lead.
Brandon Harvey picked up his third RBI of the weekend when he drove home Greg Feltes with a single to rightfield to account for the final UNCG run.
Great Dane starting pitcher Tony Kirbis (1-0) earned his first win of the season after allowing two runs on seven hits in six innings of work. Alexander Beaulieu collected his third save of the season after recording the final two outs of the ninth inning after Giorgio Fuda loaded the bases.
Freshman Clinton McKinney (0-3) took the loss in relief of starter Ryan Falcon after surrendering three runs on four hits in three plus innings on the hill. Patrick Currin and Greg Martin also saw action on the hill on the afternoon.
Mitchell, Welsh and Sean Snell all finished the day with 2-for-4 performances at the plate to lead the Spartans while Dave West went 3-for-4 for the victors.
UNCG and Albany put the finishing touches on a three-game series Sunday afternoon with the rubber match scheduled to begin a 1 p.m. from UNCG Baseball Stadium.
Story courtesy of Western Carolina sports information
Western Carolina 10-13, Princeton 3-8
Cullowhee, N.C. ? Over the course of Saturday’s baseball doubleheader, Steven Strausbaugh hit for the cycle, while Tim Hallam and Trey McDaniel each added four hits as well, to lead Western Carolina to an afternoon sweep over Princeton at Childress Field/Hennon Stadium. The Catamounts (8-9) won game one, 10-3, while taking game two, 13-8, over the Tigers (3-6).
In game one, Strausbaugh was 2-for-4 with two RBI, while Donnie Wilson was 2-of-4, as all but one starter got at least one base hit in the game. While the offense was producing, Catamount pitchers Tyler Sexton and Jeremy Ellenburg kept Princeton’s offense in check. Sexton, the reigning Southern Conference Pitcher of the Week, had another solid outing to improve to 4-1. The sophomore pitched seven innings, scattering eight hits and allowing just one earned run (three total) with no walks and four strikeouts. Only one of Ellenburg’s batters reached base, that coming on a WCU error, over his two innings of work.
Princeton took an early 1-0 lead in game one as its top hitter, Zach Wendkos, started the second inning with a home run, his third blast of the season. Jonathan Greene answered back for WCU an inning later with his first home run of the season, tying the game at 1-1.
Then, in the fourth, the Catamounts sent 10 men to the plate, taking advantage of four hits and three Tiger errors to take a 6-1 lead. Western put the game out of reach by scoring four more runs in the sixth, all unearned, courtesy of a Princeton error and five WCU hits, including a two-run triple by Strausbaugh.
Princeton cut its deficit to three (6-3) with two unearned runs in the seventh on RBI singles by Derek Beckman and Aaron Prince to provide the final margin.
Prince led the way for the Tigers offensively, getting three of their eight hits, while Mathew Becker added two hits. Erik Stiller suffered the loss to fall to 0-1 on the season. He allowed 11 hits and 10 runs. However, only three of the runs were earned.
In game two, Hallam and McDaniel each had three hits, while four other Catamounts contributed two hits each.
Strausbaugh and Blake Murphy gave Western an early 2-0 lead. With two outs in the bottom of the first, Strausbaugh hit his ninth home run of the season. Then, after a McDaniel double, Murphy delivered an RBI triple to right.
Princeton scored three runs in the top of the third to take a 3-2 lead. After single by Spencer Lucian and Dan DeGeorge, Prince had an RBI single and Andre Salini followed with a two-ruin single.
The lead was short lived as Western answered with two runs in the home half of the third. After single by Jason Hayes and Barrett Shaft, Strausbaugh had an RBI double, followed by an RBI single from McDaniel. An inning later, Shaft put Western up 6-3 with a two-run double.
The Tigers got to within a run (6-5) after tallying single runs in the fifth (solo home run by Salini) and sixth (RBI ground out by Prince) innings.
However, the Catamounts sent 12 men to the plate in the eighth, scoring seven runs on five hits and three Princeton errors. Greene and Wilson provided most of the offense, getting back-to-back, two-run singles.
Princeton tried to mount a late charge in the ninth. After a sacrifice fly by Wendkos, the Tigers extended the inning and added one run with a WCU error on the potential game ending play. Princeton would tack on one run, providing the 13-8 final, before WCU’s Andrew Larrimore got a ground out to end the contest.
Strausbuagh, who was 2-for-2 in game two with two runs, led a contingent of six Catamounts with two RBI in the night cap. He was joined by Shaft, McDaniel, Murphy, Greene and Andy John. Brock Thornburg pitched the first 3.1 innings for Western, allowing five hits and three runs with a walk and five strikeouts. Brian McCullen came out of the bullpen to notch his first win of the season, improving to 1-1. He allowed three hit and two runs over 3.2 innings with one walk and four strikeouts. With Western clinging to a one-run lead at the time, Greg Holland pitched the eighth inning, striking out all three batters he faced.
In game two for Princeton, DeGeorge, Salini and Micah Kaplan each had two hits with Salini adding three RBI. Gavin Fabian (1-2) was saddled with the loss after allowing 10 hits and six runs (four earned) over 3.2 innings.
Western Carolina and Princeton will play the third of the three-game set on Sunday with first pitch set for 1:00 pm.
Story courtesy of Davidson sports information
Yale 8, Davidson 7
DAVIDSON, N.C. ? The Yale Bulldogs completed a three-game sweep of host Davidson by scoring five times in the seventh with two out to nip the Wildcats on Saturday afternoon at Wilson Field, 8-7. Pinch hitter Ryan Lavarnway provided the winning hit with a single through the left side to help Yale improve to 8-6 on the season. Davidson, meanwhile, lost its fifth straight and is now 10-10 overall.
Justin Ankney started the rally in the seventh with one out by drawing a walk against reliever Michael Kaufman (0-3). After Marc Sawyer singled Ankney to second, Kaufman fanned the next batter for the second out. John Janco kept the inning alive with a sharp single on a full count, loading the bases. The first two runs came home on a single off the bat of Charles Bush, and Pedro Obregon tied the game with a two-run double. Lavarnway then greeted freshman Zach Kayne with the game-winning hit.
Davidson had its chances to tie the score, putting runners on the corners with two out in the seventh, another runner on second with two out in the eighth and another runner on second to start the ninth on a two-base error. But Bulldog reliever Matt Fealey escaped unscathed each time, including striking out the final two batters with the tying run on third, earning his second save of the year.
Yale got on the board first with three consecutive one-out singles in the second, the last by Obregon to drive in the run. The ’Cats responded in their half with a pair of runs on RBI singles by sophomore Hugh Eden and freshman Brett Shore.
The following frame, the Bulldogs tied the score at two on an Ankney double and a Sawyer single. Once again, Davidson had an answer with RBI singles by junior Blake Osborn and senior Dan Obermeier, giving the Wildcats a 4-2 lead through three innings.
Senior Ronnie Shore walked with one out in the fourth, stole second and came home on a bloop double off the bat of junior Rob Wilson. That ended the afternoon for Bulldog hurler Steve Gilman, who surrendered five runs on eight hits and four walks in just 3.1 innings.
Junior Rob Shenk, normally a reliever pitched well for the Wildcats in his first career start. After striking out the lead-off batter to start the sixth, Shenk had fanned a career-high nine batters while allowing just two runs on six hits and only one walk. Charles Bush hit Shenk’s 95th and final pitch over the fence in right for his first four-bagger of the season, however, to chase Shenk from the mound.
In the sixth, Davidson took a 7-3 lead on a two-out, two-run double by junior Alden Crissey. But it turned out to be not enough to hold off the Bulldogs.
Stefan Schropp (1-0) picked up the win despite allowing two runs in an inning of relief. The sidearmer Fealey held the Wildcats hitless in his 2.1 innings for the save.
Bush was Yale’s top hitter with a single, double and home run in five trips to the plate while driving in three. Sawyer also had three of the Bulldogs’ 14 hits, while Obregon joined Bush with three RBIs.
Crissey and Osborn were the lone Wildcats to collect two hits, and Davidson left 11 runners stranded. Wildcat pitchers struck out 15 Bulldogs in the game, with Osborn fanning five in the final two innings.
Davidson will attempt to end its five-game skid when it hosts Princeton on Monday, March 20 at 6 p.m. Yale finally returns home after a two-week road trip and will play host to Marist on Wednesday, March 22 at 3 p.m.
Story courtesy of Furman sports information
Penn State 4-2, Furman 2-8
GREENVILLE, S.C. -- Penn State used a pair of home runs by Matt Lewis and Scott Gummo to earn a 4-2 win over Furman in game one of a Saturday doubleheader at Furman Stadium.
Lewis connected on a two-run shot in the fourth inning off Paladin starter Matt Klinker to give the Nittany Lions a 3-1 lead, and Gummo delivered a solo blast in the seventh to stretch the Penn State advantage to 4-2.
Nittany Lion reliever Mark Wyner preserved the lead by working the final four innings and surrendering only two hits while striking out five to earn his first save of the season. Wyner’s strong work out the bullpen make a winner of Alan Stidfole (1-1), who yielded six hits, two runs, and two walks while recording seven strikeouts in five innings of work.
Klinker (2-1) absorbed his first loss of the campaign after giving up seven hits, three runs, and two walks in 5 2/3 innings. He struck out six.
Penn State jumped on top with a run in the first inning after Matt Cavagnaro led off with a single and scored on a two-out base knock by Brian Ernst.
Furman tied it at 1-1 in the bottom of the second with Joe Daysh’s one-out, solo home run over the left field fence.
The Nittany Lions regained the lead with two runs in the fourth. After Ernst drew a leadoff walk, Lewis belted a Matt Klinker offering out of the stadium for a 3-1 lead.
Furman answered in the bottom of the frame with a Ben Terry sacrifice fly RBI to make it 3-2, but Penn State regained the two-run advantage in the seventh on Gummo’s two-out solo blast to left off Paladin reliever Ryan Hudson.
The Paladins put a runner on the seventh, eighth, and ninth innings against Wyner, but each time the sophomore righthander escaped trouble.
In the seventh Nittany Lion catcher James Spinelli threw out A.J. Davidiuk at second base to end the inning. In the eighth Wyner struck out Jay Jackson with a runner on, and in the ninth he retired Paladin pinch hitter Campbell Lewis on a fly out left field for the game’s final out.
Cavagnaro had a pair of hits to lead Penn State’s nine-hit attack. Case Cassedy, Tony Maccani, and Joe Daysh had two hits each for Furman, which collected eight hits.
GREENVILLE, S.C. -- Joe Daysh and Tony Maccani delivered a pair of two-run singles in a seven-run sixth inning to lift Furman to an 8-4 win and doubleheader split with Penn State Saturday afternoon at Furman Stadium.
The Nittany Lions won the first game 4-2.
With the split Furman now stands 10-7 on the season, and Penn State is 4-12. The two teams wrap up the three-game series on Sunday in a 1:00 p.m. contest.
Trailing 3-0 heading into the sixth inning, the Paladins roughed up a trio of Nittany Lion pitchers for six hits and took advantage of a pair of errors to plate seven runs. Jay Jackson’s RBI single scored Andrew Greene to get Furman on the board. After Jackson stole second and A.J. Davidiuk walked, Daysh stroked a two-run single to centerfield off Penn State reliever Scott Kelley to tie the game at 3-3. Two batters later Maccani put Furman ahead for a good with a two-run single through the left side for a 5-3 advantage. The Paladins tacked on two more runs to make it 7-3.
Furman’s big sixth inning made a winner of Will Feemster (2-0), who came on in the sixth inning in relief of Paladin starter Mason Smith.
Feemster, a former J.L. Mann standout, tossed 1 2/3 innings of scoreless ball, allowing two hits and a walk.
Aaron Markowitz (1-1), Penn State’s starting pitcher, took the loss after yielding four runs on six hits and a walk after pitching into the sixth inning.
Furman avoided a potential stumble in the ninth after the Nittany Lions used two walks, a single, and an error to score a run and load the bases with no outs against Paladin closer Nick Hollstegge. The junior righthander recovered, however, when James Leitgeb’s liner was speared by Daysh, who stepped on third to complete a crucial double play, and Colin Runt struck out to end the game.
Four Furman players ? Ben Terry, Will Stembridge, Greene, and Daysh ? collected two hits apiece for the Paladins, who totaled 11 base hits in the contest.
Penn State also had 11 hits, led by Lance Thompson’s 3-for-4 performance.
Story courtesy of The Citadel sports information
UNLV 8, The Citadel 1
Las Vegas, Nev. ? UNLV attacked The Citadel in the first inning for the second consecutive game as they downed the Bulldogs, 8-1, Saturday afternoon at Earl E. Wilson Stadium. The Rebels put five on the board to take the early lead before they registered two home runs for the final three scores.
The Citadel, now 12-8, avoided the shutout as they scored their lone run in the eighth frame. Center fielder Trent Weathers was issued a free pass to lead-off the frame. Weathers advanced to second on a passed ball and raced to third on a wild pitch. Right fielder Matt Covington then grounded out to short to push Weathers across the dish.
Rebel starter Kevin Scogley was lifted in the eighth after giving up the Bulldog run. Scogley (1-1) held The Citadel scoreless through seven innings of work as he earned his first win of the season. The sophomore tossed 7.2 frames, scattering four hits and striking out six. Citadel senior Ryan Owens suffered the loss as he went four innings, allowing eight runs on eight hits and fanning three.
Zach Borb ignited the five-run rally for UNLV (11-12) as he smacked a lead-off single. Mike Cruz walked and Keith Smith earned a base hit to load the bases with one out. Chris Bonnell plated the first run with a chopper to short as Chad Miller stepped in and registered an RBI-groundout. Citadel second baseman Conrad Kellahan then took a grounder off the shin that allowed two more to cross the plate as Xavier Scruggs reached second on the error. The Rebels tallied one more RBI-single before Citadel starter Ryan Owens forced a groundout to end the inning.
The Rebels struck again in the third as Keith Smith sent the first pitch of the inning over the left field fence for his third home run of the year. Cruz ripped a 1-0 offering over the wall in left center for a two-run shot in the fourth, giving UNLV an 8-0 advantage.
Citadel relievers Brett Bull and Michael McLaurin combined to hold the Rebel offense hitless and scoreless through the last four frames. Bull tossed three innings and registered a strikeout while
McLaurin threw the final frame and shut UNLV down in three straight outs.
The Dogs and Rebels will wrap-up the three-game series on Sunday, March 19 at 1 p.m. (PST).
Story courtesy of Elon sports information
Elon 10, Kent State 1
ELON, N.C. -- A five-run second inning propelled the Elon Phoenix to a 10-1 non-conference baseball victory over the visiting Kent State Golden Flashes from Latham Park on Saturday evening. Elon (16-6) now owns a five game winning streak while Kent State (7-7) will drop just its second series of the season after falling in Friday’s contest as well.
The Phoenix scored an unearned run in the first inning when Donny Jobe scored on a passed ball before striking for five in its second at bat. Robert Rodebaugh led off the second with a double to center and scored on Grant Rembert’s single. Rembert advanced to second on the throw to the plate on the play. With one out, Paul Bennett walked and Rembert stole third on ball four. Ryan Addison’s single plated Rembert to stake Elon to a 3-0 lead. Jobe was issued a walk to load the bases and Adam Weaver singled home both Bennett and Addison on a 1-1 pitch for runs three and four of the inning. The fifth run scored when Chris Vasami lifted a sacrifice fly to right to score Jobe.
Kent State got its only run of the game in the third inning when Andrew Davis singled home Joe Tucker who had singled with one out.
In the bottom of the third, Elon tacked on two more runs. The first came on a RBI ground out from Bennett, the second on an Addison single. The Phoenix added a solo run in the fifth on a double from Chris Price and a solo run in the eighth on a Jobe single.
The two teams combined to strand 25 men as Elon left 14 on base and Kent State 11.
Addison drove in two runs and scored one more after going 3-for-4 on the night. The speedy outfielder also swiped a career-best three bases and is now 12-for-12 in that category this year. Jobe, Weaver, Rembert and Chris Price all recorded two hits on the evening for Elon. Weaver also drove in two while Rembert crossed the plate three times. Vasami’s 1-for-4 night extended his hitting streak to 10 games, tied for the longest streak on the team this season.
For Kent State, Emmanuel Burris was the only player to tally more than one hit, going 2-for-4 from the dish.
Elon’s Matt Chastain became the second Phoenix pitcher to reach five wins on the season, joining teammate Lance Cole at 5-0 on the year with his victory. Chastain lasted 5.0 innings and allowed one run on five hits while striking out four. Justin Bors, George Blystone and Kory Radford combined to throw the final 4.0 innings and gave up a total of two hits.
Steve Ross took the loss for the Golden Flashes, falling to 1-2 on the year. Ross surrendered eight runs (seven earned) on eight hits and three walks over 2.1 innings of work. The five Kent State pitchers combined to issue 10 walks and hit two batters while fanning seven, including six by Alan Morrison.
The two teams will face off in the final game of the three-game series on Sunday afternoon. First pitch is slated for 1:00 p.m. from Latham Park.