Game 1: Bucknell 8 Army 5
Game 2: Bucknell 6 Army 3
WEST POINT, N.Y. – The Bucknell baseball team finished off its series with Army on Sunday with a sweep of the second doubleheader of the weekend. The Bison took game one, 8-5, and rode a solid pitching performance by freshman Dylan Seeley (Shavertown, Pa./Wyoming Seminary) to a 3-1 victory in game two. With the pair of wins, the Bison are now 13-10-2 on the season, 3-1 in the Patriot League, while the Black Knights fall to 6-16 and 1-3.
In game one, Army’s Andy Ernesto scored the first run of the contest in the bottom of the first, coming home on an error after reaching with a single up the middle. Mike Greco then made it 2-0 with an RBI single that plated Cole White.
In the top of the second, Bucknell responded by batting around in the frame, scoring five runs on four hits. Senior Jason Buursma (Seattle, Wash./Lakeside School) reached on an error and sophomore John Avanzino (Manhasset, N.Y./Manhasset), the next Bison hitter, rocketed his fourth home run of the series to tie the score at two. Walks to seniors Austin Turban (Northfield, Ill./New Trier) and Ed Rubbo (Stafford, Va./Colonial Forge) followed by RBI singles from sophomore Ben Allen (Port Royal, Pa./Juniata), sophomore Ben Yoder (Belleville, Pa./Indian Valley) and junior Dane Grandizio (Bloomsburg, Pa./Bloomsburg) gave the Orange and Blue a 5-3 lead.
The Black Knights got one of the runs back in their next turn at-bat. Tony Capozzi walked and scored on an RBI double by Ernesto.
Then in the top of the third, the Bison countered with two as senior Shawn Hirsch (Morristown, N.J./Morristown) and Rubbo crossed the plate on a single by Yoder.
In the bottom of the inning, the scoring continued, with Army pulling to within 7-4. Greco walked and Brandon Hines plated him with an RBI single. The Black Knights climbed to within two in the fourth with a RBI groundout by Kevin McKague.
Four singles for the Orange and Blue in the top of the seventh yielded the team’s eighth run, with Rubbo driving in Turban.
Junior Jimmy Murphy (Syosset, N.Y./Syosset) pitched four scoreless innings of relief for the Bison and picked up the win (1-0), allowing just two hits and striking out three, while walking none. Cole White took the loss (0-3) for the Black Knights. He went 6.2 innings and surrendered eight runs, five earned, on 12 hits with three walks and six strikeouts.
Yoder, Grandizio, Avanzino and Allen all went 2-for-4 in game one, Avanzino with a home run, a double, two RBI and a run scored.
After six scoreless innings in the second contest, Bucknell managed three runs in the seventh. Yoder walked and crossed the plate on an RBI single by Angelo. The next batter, Buursma, plated Grandizio, who reached with a single up the middle and Angelo came in on an error.
Army spoiled the shutout with a run in the ninth on an RBI single by Ben Koenigsfeld, but that would be all as Seeley went the distance for the Bison to earn the victory (2-0). He scattered one run on five hits with three walks and one strikeout over nine innings.
Joey Henshaw took the loss (1-4) for the Black Knights, giving up one run on two hits with five walks and five strikeouts in five innings of work.
Angelo led Bucknell at the plate in game two, going 2-for-4 with one RBI and one run scored.
The Bison will be back in action this Wednesday, Apr. 2, at Penn State in a contest slated for 6:35 p.m.
Game 1: Holy Cross 6 Lehigh 3
Game 2: Holy Cross 11 Lehigh 3
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Freshman Eric Oxford (Danvers, Mass.) began a four-run rally in the first game and senior Gil Gomez (Lake Worth, Fla.) drove in three runs in game two as the Holy Cross baseball team swept Lehigh in Patriot League play this afternoon by scores of 6-3 and 11-3. The Crusaders improve to 8-13 on the season (4-0 Patriot League) while Lehigh falls to 12-15 (0-4 Patriot League).
In game one, the Crusaders trailed 3-2 going into the sixth inning but Oxford doubled to right field, driving in junior Steve Soldi (Clinton, Mass.) and sophomore John Sills (Milton, Mass.). With two outs, senior Brendan Akashian (Lowell, Mass.) singled to left field to score junior Jake Gorman (Norfolk, Mass.) and sophomore Matt Perry (Sudbury, Mass.), lifting Holy Cross to a 6-3 lead.
Lehigh threatened in the bottom in the sixth as the first two batters reached on singles. Sophomore Bobby Holmes (Dedham, Mass.) got out of the jam, getting the Mountain Hawks’ Logan Marshall to ground into a double play. A ground out for the final out of the sixth followed by a scoreless seventh inning gave the Crusaders the win.
Holmes picked up his second win of the season, pitching a complete game while giving up eights, three runs, while striking out five.
In the second game, Holy Cross jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the top of the third inning as a sacrifice fly by junior Jake Gorman drove in junior Billy Cupelo (Franklin, Mass.) from third base. Gomez brought in two more runs on a two-out single to right field and a single by Oxford scored Gomez for the fourth run of the inning. The Crusaders put up nine more runs while Lehigh struggled at the plate, only scoring three in six innings. Senior Mike Thater (Danbury, Conn.) earned the win on the mound, pitching seven innings, giving up just three hits, allowing one run while fanning six batters.
The Crusaders return to action on Tuesday, April 1, as they play host Massachusetts at 3:00 p.m.
Game 1: Navy 13 Lafayette 5
Game 2: Navy 6 Lafayette 5 (11 innings)
EASTON, Pa.-The Lafayette baseball team suffered two setbacks in Sunday’s doubleheader against Navy. The Leopards dropped a 13-5 decision in the opening game before suffering a 6-5 heartbreaking loss in 13 innings in the series finale.
Navy (17-9, 3-1) jumped out to a quick 1-0 lead in the first after Michael Speciale led off the game with a double to right center and came around to score on a Jonathan Wright single up the middle. Starting pitcher Jeremy Atkins settled down after that, getting three groundball outs to end the inning.
In Lafayette’s half of the second, Nick Tucker drew a two-out walk and Dan Bierce’s single down the right field line sent him to third. Ryan Roberts followed with an RBI single to left field to tie the game at one.
The Mids responded in the third with six runs on five hits. Speciale led off with a single against Atkins and came around to score on a double by Wright for a 2-1 Navy lead. Mitch Harris hit a single up the middle to plate Wright, making the score 3-1. Lafayette (11-9, 1-3) went to its bullpen, bringing in Brad Woodfield. The righty reliever recorded two outs before surrendering a two-run home run to Nick Driscoll for a 7-1 Navy lead.
In the fourth, Jeff Butler hit a lead off single and with one out, Tucker hit a single to right field. A wild pitch put runners on second and third for Bierce, who knocked in both runners with a single through the right side, cutting Navy’s lead to 7-3.
A fifth-inning solo home run by Steven Soares off Woodfield upped Navy’s edge to five (8-3). In Lafayette’s half of the inning, Luick had a one-out double and Joe Ezekiel’s single put runners on the corners for Butler. Butler ground out to the shortstop, allowing Luick to score Lafayette’s fourth run of the game. Tom Ambrosole then hit a rocket single to third base, sending Ezekiel home to make the score 8-5.
Mike LeClerc-Spier entered the game for Lafayette in the top of the sixth and surrendered four runs without recording an out. Righty Ryan Hanna relieved LeClerc-Spier and got the three outs to end the inning. Following a Lafayette error in the seventh, Hanna surrendered a two-out homerun to Speciale, Navy’s final run of the game, for a 13-5 Midshipmen lead. Freshman Ben Hertz came out of the bullpen for his second appearance of the season and recorded the inning’s final out.
In the second game, Navy picked up where it left off, scoring two runs on two hits in the top of the first inning off freshman starter Corey Shea. The Leopards caught a break when Jeff Bland failed to touch first on what would have been an RBI double, keeping the score 2-0 after one.
Ambrosole knocked a double off the left field wall to open Lafayette’s half of the second. Butler was hit by a pitch and Tucker earned a walk to load the bases for Hayes, who belted a bases-clearing double to right center to tie the game. A throwing error by Navy’s third baseman allowed the inning’s fourth run to score for the 4-2 Lafayette lead. Luick’s two-out single loaded the bases again and forced Navy to go to its bullpen and bring in lefty Kevin Heasley, who recorded the final out of the inning, preventing any further damage.
In the top of the fourth, Navy tacked on a run off a Wright RBI double to make it a one run game (4-3).
Mitch Harris’s leadoff home run in the fifth inning off Shea tied the game at four as Joe Kinney called on Tyler Chromey to relieve Shea. Chromey got out of the inning without allowing a run and would go on to pitch 2.1 innings of scoreless ball.
The remained knotted at four through six innings. Brian Mostek entered the game with one out and one runner on base in the top of the seventh. A great diving catch by Butler marked the inning’s second out and Harris was caught stealing, preventing Navy from taking the lead.
Navy’s Renaldo Hollins led off the top of the ninth with a walk and advanced to third on a single by Jonathan Wright. Jason Morytko entered the game for Lafayette and surrendered an RBI single to Hamilton to give Navy the 5-4 lead.
Lafayette would not give in, however, as Froio led off the bottom of the ninth with a single to left field and Bierce sacrificed him to second. With two outs Matt Hall pinch hit for Ambrosole and hit a RBI triple to left center, tying the game at five. A.J. Miller pinch hit with the potential game-winning run on third but struck out looking, forcing extra innings.
The game remained tied until Navy broke the scoring drought with a run in the top of the 13th off Morytko. Ryan Hanna came in from the bullpen to relieve Morytko. Jeff Murzda’s pinch hit single scored Hollins from first to give Navy the 6-5 lead and the eventual win.
The Leopards continue their homestand on Tuesday against Delaware in the second round of the Liberty Bell Classic. Game time is scheduled for 3 p.m.
