Marshall University Athletics
Marshall University
Youngstown State
Gomez, Blain Power Baseball Past Youngstown State, 4-0
3/13/2009 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
March 13, 2009
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. - Senior left-handed pitcher Andrew Blain tossed six masterful innings and sophomore first baseman Victor Gomez clouted his third home run of the season to lift the Thundering Herd to a 4-0 victory over Youngstown State in Friday afternoon's non-conference baseball game at George T. Smailes Field at The Kennedy Center.
With the win, Marshall snaps its two-game losing skid to improve to 6-7 on the season, while Youngstown State falls to 2-10 overall.
The win marks the first time since Feb. 29 of last season that Marshall has shutout its opponent. The Thundering Herd took a 6-0 decision over George Mason in the opening game of the Coastal Carolina Bash at the Beach tournament in 2008.
Blain allowed only three hits and issued four strikeouts en route to his first victory of the season and a 1-0 record, while Youngstown State starter Aaron Swenson went the distance, allowing four runs on seven hits with three walks and three strikeouts to fall to 0-2 on the season.
After four scoreless innings of play, Marshall broke the deadlock in the bottom of the fifth when freshman designated hitter Thor Meeks doubled to right center field. Sophomore shortstop Kenny Socorro followed that with a double of his own to center field, sending Meeks home with the game's first run. From there, sophomore right fielder Ben Jurevicius drove Socorro home with a one-out single into left field and advanced to second on the throw home. A double play by the Penguins ended the threat but not before the Herd built a 2-0 advantage.
In the bottom of the sixth, senior center fielder Nate Lape earned a one-out free pass before Gomez smashed his third homer of the season, a two-run shot over the left field fence, giving Marshall a 4-0 lead.
Junior right-hander Tyler Gatrell and senior lefty Brian Mooney combined to pitch a scoreless seventh inning before sophomore hurler Ian Kadish entered and pitched the final two frames. Kadish scattered just two hits and struck out two to help preserve the shutout victory.
Gomez finished with two hits and a pair of RBIs, while senior second baseman Adam Yeager, Meeks, Socorro Jurevicius and sophomore catcher Kevin Shackelford each recorded hits in the winning effort.
Jurevicius extended his hitting streak to 13 games in the win, while Yeager pushed his hot hitting to 12 games in a row.
The teams will clash again Saturday, March 14 with first-pitch now slated for 11:00 a.m. ET. Sunday's start time is still slated for 1:00 p.m.
