Story courtesy of Wofford sports information
Wofford 5, Youngstown State 3
SPARTANBURG, SC ? Bradford Eaves drove in three runs with a double and a homer to lead Wofford College to a 5-3 win over Youngstown State on Sunday at Russell C. King Field.
Eaves’ homer to left leading off the seventh, his first of the year, broke a 3-3 tie and helped the Terriers to the weekend sweep of the Penguins. In all three games, the Terriers overcame early deficits to rally back and win.
Youngstown State struck for single runs in each of the first three innings in building a 3-1 lead. In the first, J.D. Hannan singled and scored on a single by Erich Diedrich.
Wofford tied the game in the first as Penguin starter Chris Dennis walked three of the first four batters he faced to load the bases. Shane Kirkley scored on an infield error to tie the game at 1.
YSU went up 2-1 in the second when Dustin Thomas was hit by a pitch, moved to third on a single by Lou Gattozi and scored on a single by Charles Schultz. The Penguins went up 3-1 in the third on a single by Brian Dill, who then stole second, and came around to score on a sacrifice fly by Gattozi.
Wofford tied the game in the fourth when Dennis walked Stephen Johnson and Keith Munns was hit by a pitch. A sacrifice bunt by Brent Pearce moved the runners up to second and third before Eaves doubled in both runs.
Following Eaves’ solo homer in the seventh, the Terriers added a single run in the eighth when they managed three consecutive infield singles. Pearce then grounded to second, driving home Johnson.
Reid McElveen threw five innings of one-hit ball to earn his first win of the season. J.D. Melton picked up his fourth save of the year by retiring the final two hitters.
Dennis and YSU reliever Ryan Boone allowed Wofford just one hit through the first six innings. Boone took the loss as his record fell to 0-1.
Eaves finished the day two-for-four with three RBI.
Wofford first baseman Adam Wood had his 13-game hitting streak snapped on Sunday.
Story courtesy of Davidson sports information
Davidson 4-10, Columbia 3-8 (10 inn.)
DAVIDSON, N.C. -- Junior Alden Crissey recorded the first pitching victory of his career and provided Davidson with a walk-off single in the bottom of the 11th to defeat the visiting Columbia Lions in the opener, 4-3. In the series finale the Lexington, Ky., native continued his impressive afternoon going 2-for-3 with a blast and three runs scored to lead the Wildcats to a 10-8 victory at Wilson Field Sunday afternoon.
With the four wins this weekend Davidson improves to 9-3 overall, Columbia begins the 2006 campaign 0-4.
Columbia put the first runs on the board in the opener when Andrew Ward drove Blake Osborn’s 1-1 offering over the left-field wall to give the Lions a 3-0 lead in the top of the first. Ward’s first shot of the season scored Marc Gold and Craig Rodwogin, who reached on consecutive hits.
The Wildcats answered with a run in the bottom of the third thanks to a Gregory Zage sacrifice fly and tied the contest with a pair of runs in the following inning. Ronnie Shore knotted the game at three runs each with an RBI double that scored Pat Brady and Dan Obermeier.
After both squads failed to score over the next six innings, Davidson broke the tie and won its third straight game when Crissey drove Brett Beller’s first pitch up the middle to plate Jordan Mills, who delivered a one-out single to start the game’s fourth extra frame.
Crissey (1-0), who finished the first game 3-for-6 at the plate, worked the top of the 11th, facing the minimum while striking out one in his first career appearance on the mound.
Columbia’s Beller (0-1) suffered the loss tossing the final two frames, allowing three hits, a run, three walks, while fanning two Wildcats.
After falling behind 1-0 in the series finale, Davidson answered with four runs in the home half of the first to grab a 4-1 advantage. The four runs were scored thanks to six Wildcat hits in the inning.
The Lions responded with two more runs in the third, but not before Davidson scored three times in both the third and fourth innings as a result of four home runs. Crissey and Osborn started the attack with back-to-back shots to lead off the third, while Alex Entrekin hit his second of the season in the fourth and Osborn delivered for the second time in the contest two batters later.
Columbia pushed across four unanswered runs over the next three innings to cut the deficit to 10-8, but was unable get closer as Wildcat reliever Jay Heafner closed the door in the seventh for his fifth save of the year.
Matt Meade (1-0) recorded his first win of the season pitching five solid innings, scattering seven hits, allowing six runs (four earned), while striking out two. Columbia’s Joe Scarlatta (0-1) received the loss lasting four innings, giving up 12 hits and 10 runs in his season debut.
Davidson returns to the diamond Tuesday, March 7 when the Wildcats travel to Boiling Springs, N.C. to face in-state rival Gardner-Webb at 3 p.m. The Lions will enjoy a five-day layoff before playing Army in Tampa, Fla., on Saturday, March 11.
Story courtesy of Elon sports information
Elon 7, Siena 2
ELON, N.C. -- Matt Chastain pitched eight strong innings and tied a career-high with six strikeouts while Chris Vasami hit his third home run in two games to lead the Elon Phoenix to a 7-2 non-conference baseball victory over the visiting Siena Saints on Sunday afternoon. The win gave the Phoenix the sweep of the three-game series and upped its record to 10-4 in 2006. Siena dropped to 0-6 this year.
The Saints took an early 2-0 lead in the top of the second inning which began with a walk to Rick Seltzer. A Eric Hildenbrand bouncing single down the leftfield line put men on second and third for Billy Lazio. Lazio sent an 0-1 pitch from Chastain into right for a single, driving home Seltzer with the game’s first run and advancing Hildenbrand to to second. Hildenbrand would later score on an RBI groundout to third from John Wilkes. It was the only time all series that Siena held a lead.
Elon responded in the bottom of the second as Grant Rembert tripled to lead off the inning. A walk to Vasami put runners on the corners. Robert Rodebaugh’s sacrifice fly to right allowed Rembert to trim the lead to 2-1. Following a double from Adam Weaver to put runners on second and third, Ryan Addison lifted a sac fly to center that drove in Vasami to knot the score at two.
The Phoenix took the lead for good in the fourth when Vasami drove the first pitch of the inning over the wall in right-center. A sacrifice fly from Rembert in the fifth brought home Donny Jobe with Elon’s fourth run of the game in the fifth inning.
A three-run eighth inning by Elon put the game out of reach. In that frame, Rembert walked and the Saints then committed errors on two bunt attempts from the next two batters to load the bases with no outs. Weaver’s line drive single to center knocked in two of the three runs of the inning. The third crossed the plate when Addison singled home Kevin Pratt.
Chastain improved his record to 3-0 on the year after a strong performance on the mound. The senior lasted 8.0 innings and allowed two runs on five hits and two walks while fanning six, equalling a career-best which he had achieved twice before. Freshman closer Tom Porter allowed one walk and struck out the side in the ninth.
Matt Moberg took the loss and dipped to 0-1 on the year. The freshman was roughed up for four runs on five hits and a walk over 4.0 innings of work. Moberg struck out one hitter.
At the plate, Weaver was the only Elon hitter to record a multi-hit outing, going 2-for-3 with two runs driven in on the afternoon. Vasami was 1-for-2 with one RBI and three runs scored. Jobe’s 1-for-4 day extended his hitting streak to nine games. Paul Bennett saw his 10-game hitting streak come to an end after an 0-for-3 outing.
For Siena, Seltzer and Hildenbrand each finished 1-for-3 with one run scored while Lazio posted a 1-for-4 day with an RBI and Wilkes went 1-for-3 with an RBI.
Elon will visit Wake Forest on Wednesday afternoon. Game time is slated for 2:30 p.m. from Hooks Field in Winston-Salem, N.C. Siena heads to Charlotte for a three-game series with the 49ers beginning on Saturday, March 11 with a noon doubleheader.
Story courtesy of College of Charleston sports information
College of Charleston 15, Georgia State 2
Mt. Pleasant, S.C. -- Alex Garabedian hit a two-run homer and Larry Cobb and Ben Lasater added four hits each as the College of Charleston defeated Georgia State, 15-2, completing a sweep of its three-game college baseball series before 617 at Patriots Point Field on Sunday.
Charleston, who banged out a season-high 22 hits, improved to 10-3 on the season, while the Panthers fell to 6-5.
Garabedian, who went 3-for-4, hit his second homer of the season, a two-run shot to left in the sixth, that gave Charleston an 11-1 lead.
Cobb, who went 4-for-5, had a fourth inning triple, a single in the sixth and doubles in the fifth and seventh innings. Lasater, who hit a solo homer in a 2-1 win over GSU on Saturday, had four hits in five at bats.
The Panthers had 10 hits including a solo homer by Nick McEntyre leading off the ninth inning.
Danny Meszaros (1-0) was the winner allowing a run on seven hits with four strikeouts over six innings. Clayton Shunick (2-1), the first of six Panther pitchers in the game, suffered the loss allowing seven runs, three earned, on nine hits over 4 2/3 innings.
The Cougars play host to St. John's in a three-game series at Patriots Point beginning Friday, March 10th. The opener is slated to begin at 5:00.
Story courtesy of The Citadel sports information
Princeton 3, The Citadel 2
Charleston, S.C. ? Princeton avoided the sweep as the Tigers slipped by The Citadel, 3-2 Sunday afternoon at Riley Park. The Dogs scored two in the first, but could not get another run across the plate as Princeton came from behind to claim the one-run victory.
Second baseman Aaron Prince lifted the Tigers past The Citadel, batting 2-for-3 with one RBI and scoring twice.
The Citadel (9-4) attacked Princeton in the first inning for the third consecutive game. Second baseman Conrad Kellahan drew a lead off walk and then stole second. Right fielder Matt Covington singled up the middle to move Kellahan to third. Left fielder Chris Swauger then worked the count for another walk to load the bases with no outs. Tiger second baseman Prince misplayed a grounder that allowed Kellahan and Covington to race home and make it 2-0. Princeton starter Christian Staehely struck out two to get out of the inning without any further damage.
Princeton (1-3) tied it up in the sixth as shortstop Dan Degeorge led off with a single to short. Degeorge advanced to second on a wild pitch and came around to score on a base hit off the bat of Prince. Prince moved to second on a groundout and then raced to third on a passed ball. Third baseman Sal Iacano drove in the tying run with a single up the middle.
The Tigers took a slight 3-2 lead in the eighth. Prince reached on a base hit and moved to second when right fielder Andrew Salini drew a walk. Prince then raced around to score from second on a wild pitch from Citadel reliever Brett Bull that rolled to the backstop.
Steven Miller came on to close it out for the Tigers in the ninth. Miller forced pinch-hitter Graham Couch to ground out before Kellahan bunted for a single. Right fielder Matt Covington reached on a fielder’s choice before Swauger grounded out to make the final 3-2.
Miller earned his first save of the season as he went two innings, giving up only one hit. Tiger reliever Reid Peyton earned the win in his first outing of the season as he tossed two frames and held the Bulldog offense hitless.
Bull (0-1) suffered the loss as he pitched two innings in relief and surrendered the winning run on three hits and striking out one. Junior hurler Justin Smith made his first start on the mound this season as he tossed six frames, allowing two runs on four hits and fanning six.
Next up, The Citadel travels to Raleigh, N.C. to face No. 17 N.C. State on Wednesday, March 8 at 4 p.m. in Doak Field.
Story courtesy of Western Carolina sports information
Western Carolina 11, Charleston Southern 1
North Charleston, S.C. ? The Western Carolina battery of catcher Blake Murphy and pitcher Brock Thornburg led the Catamounts to an 11-1 victory over Charleston Southern Sunday afternoon at Collins Park. Murphy was 3-for-4 with a two-run home run, while Thornburg, who struck out six with no walks, only allowed two hits and one unearned run over six innings to get the win.
Also, offensively for the Cats, Trey McDaniel was 3-for-4, while Tim Hallam, Grey Gregory, Barrett Shaft and Jonathan Greene each had two hits.
The Catamounts, as they did in the previous two games of the series, took an early lead, scoring two runs in the top of the first. Hallam had a leadoff double and moved to third on Gregory’s bunt single. Shaft drove in Hallam with an RBI fielder’s choice. Murphy followed with a double to left-center field and Shaft was able to score on the play thanks to a error.
In the second, Anthony Hayes cut the Bucs’ deficit to one (2-1) as he scored without the benefit of a hit. After the CSU first baseman reached on an error, he moved to second on a balk, advanced to third on a wild pitch and scored on a wild pitch, all while the next batter ? designated hitter Keith Stewart ? was at bat.
The Catamounts took advantage of three errors to extended their advantage to five (6-1) in the third. Gregory had a leadoff single, stole second, advanced to third on an error and scored on Shaft’s single. After Murphy moved Shaft up on a ground out and Shaft advanced to third on a wild pitch, McDaniel delivered an RBI single to right. Scott Ward kept the inning alive by reaching on a fielder’s choice and advancing to second due to a throwing error on the play. Greene put runners on the corners with an infield single. Greene stole second and Ward scored on the play when the throw to second went into center field. Even though Andy John struck out swinging, the Cats had runners on first and third once again as John reached on a passed ball. Western capped the inning with a double steal, allowing Greene to score.
In the fifth, Western nearly duplicated CSU’s only run, rounding the bases due to defensive miscues. Murphy had an infield single, stole second, moved to third on a passed ball and then scored on a passed ball, making the score 7-1.
In the ninth, Shaft welcomed new CSU pitcher Mark Terifaj with a leadoff single. Then, Murphy hit his first home run of the season, a two-run shot to left-center. McDaniel followed with double, advanced to third on a throwing error and scored on an RBI single by Greene. Greene would moved to third on CSU’s seventh error of the day and score on Aaron Gabrielian’s RBI single, the first hit and RBI for the freshman.
Brandon McDowell, Corey Martin and Greg Holland worked the final three innings, allowing just two hits, one walk and two strikeouts.
For Charleston Southern, D.J. Throneburg (1-2) suffered the loss, allowing nine hits, seven runs (four earned) and three walks with four strikeouts.
Western Carolina will continue its nine-game road swing with games on Tuesday (Mar. 7) and Wednesday (Mar. 8) at UNC Wilmington.
Story courtesy of Alabama sports information
Alabama 8, Appalachian State 3
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- No. 20 Alabama exploded for seven runs in the sixth and seventh innings to erase a two-run deficit en route to an 8-3 win Sunday afternoon over Appalachian State University at Sewell-Thomas Stadium.
The Crimson Tide scored four runs in the sixth inning to take a two-run lead and added three more runs in the seventh inning to complete the three-game sweep of ASU and extend its winning streak to seven games.
Alabama (12-3) pounded out a season-high 16 hits on Sunday and got three hits each from junior center fielder Emeel Salem and junior shortstop Greg Paiml. Senior third baseman Matt Downs, freshman DH Alex Avila and senior first baseman Spencer Pennington added two hits apiece for the Tide.
Bama scored four times in the sixth inning to take a 5-3 lead. Pennington (2-for-4, 2 R, RBI) stroked a one-out single to right and moved to second on a wild pitch. Junior left fielder Brandon Belcher (1-for-2, R, BB) drew a walk and Paiml (3-for-4, 2B, RBI) started the scoring spree with sharp single up the middle to score Pennington from second base and cut the deficit to 3-2.
Salem followed with a single to center field to load the bases and Downs (2-for-5, 2B, 3 RBI) then followed with a two-run single to put the Tide ahead for the first time in the game at 4-3. Downs two-run single chased Appalachian starter Jason Rook (1-1), who allowed five runs and 10 hits in 5 1/3 innings.
Senior second baseman Evan Bush capped the inning as he greeted reliever Zach Quate with a base hit to right field to put Bama up 5-3.
ASU (5-4) attempted a comeback in the seventh inning against Jake McCarter. David Rubinstein drew a leadoff walk and Ben Billinglsey followed with a base hit to left field. Sophomore RHP David Robertson relieved McCarter and needed only four pitches to get out of the inning.
Robertson promptly picked off Rubinstein at second base for the first out and catcher Kody Valverde gunned down Billingsley trying to steal second base on Robertson’s third pitch. Wes Borden then took a called third strike on the next pitch and Bama was out of the inning.
McCarter (2-0) worked one inning in relief of starter Tommy Hunter and notched his second win of the season. McCarter gave up one hit, walked one and struck out one batter.
Alabama put the game out of reach in the bottom of the seventh inning, scoring three runs on four hits, including three doubles. Avila (2-for-4, 2 R, 2B, HR, RBI) led off with a double to left center field and scored on Penington’s single to right to give the Tide a 6-3 lead. Salem (3-for-5, 2B, RBI) and Downs both followed with RBI doubles as Bama opened up an 8-3 lead.
Robertson worked two innings out of the pen and recorded three strikeouts. Senior RHP Jordan Davis, who has struggled much of the 2006 season, worked a scoreless ninth with two strikeouts.
Alabama got off to slow start and fell behind 3-1 after 5 1/2 innings of play.
Appalachian State benefitted from a walk and an error in the top of the second inning to take a 2-0 lead. Kevin Butler led off the inning with a double and Rook drew a walk. Both runners moved up one base after a throwing error by Hunter on a failed pickoff attempt. A pair of infield ground outs by Chris Baker and Nick DeRose gave the Mountaineers a 2-0 lead.
Alabama cut the margin to 2-1 in the bottom of the second inning when Avila blasted a 3-1 pitch over the left-center field wall for his first collegiate home run.
ASU got another unearned run in the top of the third inning to take a 3-1 lead. Rubinstein led off the inning with a base hit to right center and eventually scored on a throwing error by Paiml.
Appalachian concludes a stretch of four-straight games versus nationally ranked teams when it travels to Chapel Hill to face No. 2 North Carolina (10-1) on Wednesday at 3 p.m.
Story courtesy of Georgia Southern sports information
UNC Asheville 10, Georgia Southern 3
STATESBORO, Ga. ? UNC Asheville broke a 3-all tie scoring six runs in the top of the sixth inning as Georgia Southern dropped a 9-3 decision in the finale of the GSU Invitational Sunday afternoon (March 5). The Eagles lost 2-of-3 on the weekend, falling to 9-7 overall.
Kevin Mattison and Brett Robinson hit back-to-back solo home runs in the top of the first as the Bulldogs jumped out to a 2-0 lead. A one-out double by Griffin Benedict and single from Greg Dowling put runners at the corners. Justin Klinger ripped a shot into the right field gap, cutting the deficit in half.
Mattison hit another solo homer in the third putting UNCA ahead 3-1.
Chris Hollis lined a leadoff double in the fifth then Benedict drew a four-pitch walk. Both advanced on a groundout. Derrick Smith lined a single to right field that tied the game, 3-3.
However, the Bulldogs exploded for six runs on seven hits in their half of the sixth. Elliott Arrington delivered a 2-run double as UNCA batted around.
The Eagles loaded the bases in the bottom of the eighth with no outs. However, pinch-hitter Will Southwell hit a soft liner to shortstop Matt Henson. With the runners going on contact, Henson caught the liner, stepped on second base and threw onto first to complete the triple play.
Chris Shehan finished 3-for-4, knocking his first two doubles of the year. Brian Pierce added two hits. Aaron Eubanks (1-1) suffered the loss in relief, charged for five runs on five hits in 1.1 innings.
Four different Bulldogs registered three hits as they out-hit Georgia Southern 18-11. Alan DeRatt (1-1) allowed three runs on eight hits in seven innings. He walked two and struck out three.
The Eagles begin a five-game roadtrip next weekend, starting against South Alabama. GS plays the Jaguars Saturday night (March 11) at 7 p.m. EST. On Sunday the Eagles face Coastal Carolina at noon then USA in a game immediately following.
In Sunday’s first game, Michigan jumped out to a 9-0 lead and cruised to a 9-4 victory. Nate Recknagel and A.J. Scheidt led the Wolverines (3-4 overall) with two hits apiece. Eric Rose drove in three runs. Andrew Hess (1-0) allowed two runs on three hits in 5.1 innings.
Brian Hansen hit a 3-run homer and Keith Connors had two of LeMoyne’s (3-5) six hits. Michael Falasca (0-1) suffered the loss, allowing seven runs on four hits in 3.2 innings.
Story courtesy of UNC Greensboro sports information
UNC Greensboro 3, Bethune-Cookman 1
JACKSONVILLE, FL ? Junior Nick Starnes allowed just one hit and no runs in seven innings of relief work on the hill as the UNC Greensboro baseball team bested Bethune-Cookman 3-1 Sunday afternoon in the third of four games from North Florida’s Harmon Stadium.
Starnes (1-0), who earned his first win of the season, came on in relief of starting hurler Ryan Falcon and allowed a meaningless two-out hit to Chris Brown with no one on in the bottom of the fourth inning. The Haw River, NC native was dominant on the hill, allowing the Wildcats with no real scoring opportunities.
The Wildcats did produce one legitimate scoring opportunity against Starnes in the sixth inning, but Wes McCall and Adam Deleo erased any chance of that with a beautiful double play. With runners on first and third with one out, McCall made an outstanding play over his should to retire Nabil Sagbini on a foul out for the second out. Once McCall made the grab, Alejandro Jimenez broke for him, but McCall threw a strike to Deleo that beat the runner by eight feet. Deleo applied the tag with ease to negate the scoring threat.
Joseph Gautier (1-3) suffered the loss for the Wildcats as he allowed two runs on six hits in six innings on the hill.
Bethune-Cookman cracked the scoreboard first and took a 1-0 lead after one inning of play. Jose Ortiz led off with a bunt single and then stole second before Chris Henault reached base safely with a walk. After Jimenez moved both runners over with a groundout on the infield, Rob Caruso drove home the Wildcats’ first run with a sacrifice fly to right.
UNCG struck for two runs in the top of the sixth to take a 2-1 lead. Junior Jermaine Mitchell led off the frame with a double to rightfield and Guy Welsh followed with a single on the infield to move Mitchell to third. Greg Matson looked to drive in the tying run with a safety squeeze bunt on the infield, but Gautier fielded the ball quickly to tie up Mitchell in between third and home. Mitchell was eventually retired at third base as he made a diving attempt back to the bag trying to avoid the tag.
David Adams reached on an error by the shortstop to load the bases before catcher Adam Deleo laced a single to right centerfield to score both Welsh and Matson to give the Spartans a one run advantage and collect his first two RBI of the season.
The Spartans added an insurance run in the top of the eighth on an RBI single from Adams. Welsh started the inning with a double to rightfield and Matson advanced him to third with a sacrifice bunt before Adams’ single to center plated Welsh from third.
Mitchell, Welsh and McCall led the Spartans at the plate as the trio each collected two hits.
UNCG returns to action Monday when the Spartans face the Japanese College Team in an exhibition game. First pitch is scheduled for 10 a.m. for North Florida’s Harmon Stadium.