Marshall University Athletics
Herd Baseball Loses Heartbreaker To UAB, 4-3
2/28/2004 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Herd Baseball Loses Heartbreaker To UAB, 4-3
2/28/2004
- Box Score
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - UAB left fielder Matt Womble hit the game-winning single off of Herd pitcher Chris Cummings (Huntington, WV) in the bottom of the eighth to give the Blazers a 4-3 lead, which they would hold on to in the ninth and earn their ninth straight victory.
Marshall had early scoring chances in the first two innings. In the first, Marshall Murray (Walnut Creek, CA) was hit by a pitch to reach base with one out. A single by Adam Frederick (Franklin, PA) put two on with one out, but Blazer freshman starter Grant Addison was able to get the final two batters out to keep the game scoreless. The Herd threatened again in the top of the second when catcher Rich Russell (Toronto, Ont.) hit a lead off double. He was moved to third when Roddy Stieger (Westchester, OH) hit a sacrifice fly to center field, but the Herd?s run was stopped short when Addison was once again able to get the final two outs of the inning.
MU starter Chris Koutsavlis (Pittsburgh, PA) retired the Blazers in order in the first inning, but ran into problems in the second inning when Blazer DH Nathan McCorkle hit a lead off homerun to give UAB a 1-0 lead. Koutsavlis allowed one more hit in the innings, but was able to escape the inning without any further damage.
In the top of the third, the Herd again had their chance to score. Marshall Murray reached base with a one out walk, which was followed up by a bunt single by Adam Frederick. After a strikeout by Corie O?Bryan (Frederick, MD), Francois Larmore (Magnolia, NJ) loaded up the bases after reaching base due to an error by UAB shortstop Dan Stucky. The next batter, Rich Russell, looking for his second straight hit, struck out to end the inning, leaving the bases loaded.
The Herd?s luck changed in the top of the fourth. Roddy Stieger walked to lead off the inning. A single by sophomore Aaron Jamieson (Lindsay, Ont.) put two on base with no outs. A strike out by left fielder Brad Helm (Downington, PA) brought up center fielder Chris Monaco (Tucson, AZ). A wild pitch during Monaco?s at bat advanced the runners to second and third. Monaco hit a single, which brough the two runs to give the Herd their first lead of the series. The hit extended Monaco?s hit streak to five. He has recorded a hit in every game as a member of the Thundering Herd.
After his single, Monaco stole second and moved to third after a balk by the pitcher. A single by Adam Frederick, his third of the day, brought in Monaco to give Marshall a 3-1 lead.
UAB cut the lead to 3-2 in the bottom of the inning after first baseman Daniel Hill hit a triple to lead off the inning. He was brought home after a sacrifice fly by Nathan McCorkle.
The Herd threatened in the top of the fifth after Rich Russell hit his second lead off double of the day. A sacrifice bunt moved him to third with one out, but UAB pitcher Jacob Legg was able to get the final two outs without allowing a run.
The Blazers tied the game in the bottom of the sixth. UAB DH Nathan McCorkle hit a one-out single and reached second on a wild pitch by Koutsavlis. After getting Matt Womble to pop out, Koutsavlis allowed a two-out RBI single to UAB catcher Eugene Rodriguez to tie the game at three.
In the bottom of the seventh with two outs, Koutsavlis was replaced by right-hander Chris Cummings (Huntington, WV). Cummings got the third out of the inning, throwing three straight strikes to Blazer Josh Miljavac.
Cummings was not as lucky in the bottom of the eighth as UAB grabbed their first lead of the game. Blazer Seth Rollin led off the inning with a single and advanced to second after a balk by Chris Cummings. After getting Daniel Hill to fly out, Cummings issued a walk to Nathan McCorkle, which brought up Matt Womble. Womble hit a single to right to bring in Rollin and give the Blazers a 4-3 lead. The Herd intentionally walked Eugene Rodriguez to load the bases with one out. Coach Piepenbrink then brought in closer Chris Meadows (Huntington, WV), who got Cole Helms of UAB to ground into a double play to end the inning.
In the top of the ninth, Corie O?Bryan was hit by a pitch to reach first. Josh McConnell (Pehnix City, AL) was brought in to pinch run. Larmore came up next and reached base after an error by the left fielder to put two on with no outs. After that, pitcher Eric Roberts was able to get the next three batters out to finish off the game.
For the game, Koutsavlis pitched 6 2/3 innings, allowing three runs on seven hits. Cummings pitched 0.2 innings, giving up one run on two hits and took the loss, which drops his record to 1-1. Meadows faced one batter, getting the double play.
Adam Frederick had a strong game, tallying three hits in five AB?s, his second three-hit game in the last three games.
Marshall had three runs on seven hits, leaving 14 on base. UAB got four runs on nine hits. The loss drops MU?s record to 1-7 and improves UAB to 7-0.
The Herd and Blazers will face off in the final game of the series on Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m. Log on to www.HerdZone.com for a complete update.
