Marshall University Athletics
Marshall University
Rice
Gomez Powers Baseball Past No. 1 Rice, 11-7
4/19/2009 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
April 19, 2009
HOUSTON, Texas - Sophomore designated hitter Victor Gomez smashed two homers and Marshall used a pair of four-run innings to help lift the Thundering Herd to a phenomenal 11-7 victory over No. 1 Rice in Sunday afternoon's Conference USA baseball game at Reckling Park.
With the win, Marshall improves to 16-22 overall, 6-9 in league action and earns the program's first-ever win over the Owls. Rice slips to 27-10 on the season, 11-4 in C-USA play.
The win over Rice was Marshall's third over a ranked opponent this season. The Herd took a game from No. 19 East Carolina and No. 18 Ohio State earlier in the season before knocking off the nation's top-ranked team on Sunday.
Trailing 11-5 in the bottom of the ninth, Rice picked up its first hit since the fourth inning when Anthony Rendon smacked a solo shot to deep left field to lead off the inning. Junior reliever Austin Coan then fanned the next batter before Michael Fuda poked a base hit into shallow right field. Craig Manuel followed that with a walk to give the Owls two on with one out. A wild pitch allowed the runners to advance into scoring position before a second wild pitch allowed Fuda to score, making the score 11-7. Coan then fired a strikeout and used a fly out to center to end the contest.
Coan earned the win and moves to 3-3 on the season, pitching the final 3.2 innings and striking out five in the process. Rice reliever Matt Evers suffered the loss and falls to 2-2 on the season. He gave up four runs on four hits in 2.0 frames of relief.
Rice drew first blood in the bottom of the third frame when Jeremy Rathjen drew a one-out walk, moved to second on a groundout and then scored on an RBI base hit by Jimmy Comerota. The Owls then loaded the bases thanks to a pair of free passes, but Diego Seastrunk hit into an inning-ending fielder's choice, keeping the score at 1-0.
The Owls loaded the bases again in the bottom of the fourth when Fuda led off the stanza with a triple to right center before Daniel Gonzalez-Luna and Steven Sultzbaugh earned walks to fill the sacks, chasing starter Mike Mason from the game in favor of right-handed reliever Tyler Gatrell. Pinch-hitter Chad Mozingo then punched a run-scoring single into left field, giving Rice a 2-0 lead. Brock Holt then earned an RBI walk, pushing the lead to 3-0. A sacrifice fly by Comerota delivered the third run of the frame, extending the cushion to 4-0 and sent pinch-runner Ryan Lewis to third. Gatrell then fired a strikeout and used a groundout to prevent further damage.
Marshall got its bats going in the top of the fifth inning when freshman right fielder Eric Semeniuk singled up the middle to start things off and then raced to third on a single to left center by sophomore catcher Kevin Shackelford. Sophomore shortstop Kenny Socorro then hit into a double play but that drove in a run, making the score 4-1 before a fly out ended the Herd fifth.
The Herd exploded for four runs in the top of the sixth stanza when Gomez belted a two-out single down the left line and then came full circle on an RBI double to center field, making the score 4-2. Red-shirt left fielder Rhett Stafford followed that with an RBI double to center field before Rice starter Mark Haynes was lifted from the game in favor of righty Matthew Reckling who immediately gave up a four-pitch walk to senior first baseman Brandon Casamassima. Semeniuk then reached on catcher's interference to load the bases before another four-pitch walk to Shackelford sent Stafford home, pulling Marshall to within one at 4-3 and chasing Reckling from the contest in favor of Jordan Rogers. Socorro then earned a four-pitch free pass, bringing Casamassima home with the game-tying run. Rogers was then yanked from the game in favor of Evers who gave up an RBI base hit to senior second baseman Adam Yeager, giving the Herd a 5-4 lead. Evers then forced an inning-ending ground out to get out of the jam.
In the bottom of the sixth, Rice put its first two runners on when Sultzbaugh was hit by a pitch and Lewis earned a walk. A sacrifice bunt by Holt moved the runners into scoring position before Coan was called into the game in place of junior lefty Ryan Kiel. Comerota then delivered a sacrifice fly to right field, scoring Sultzbaugh and sending Lewis to third to tie the score at 5-5. Coan then issued a strikeout to keep the score knotted heading to the seventh.
Marshall regained the lead in the top of the seventh when junior third baseman Josh Valle singled to center to leadoff the frame before trotting home on a monster home run from Gomez, his 13th of the season, making the score 7-5 in favor of the Herd. Evers dodged further damage when he fired a strikeout and used a fly out and an infield pop out to end the inning.
Rice put together a two-out rally in the bottom of the seventh, earning a pair of walks to spark a threat, but Coan forced a harmless fly out to centerfield to end the frame and keep Rice from cutting into the two-run lead.
The Herd responded with its own two-out rally in the top of the eighth when Yeager legged out an infield single to shortstop, and sophomore centerfielder Ben Jurevicius was hit by a pitch, chasing Evers from the game in favor of Jared Rogers. From there, Valle laced a single up the middle, plating Yeager from second and giving Marshall an 8-5 advantage. Gomez then ripped his second homer of the game and 14th of the season, this time a three-run shot to left field, giving the Herd an 11-5 lead.
After Coan held the Owls scoreless in the bottom of the eighth, Semeniuk blasted a one-out double to left field in the top of the ninth frame but was stranded there as a strikeout and ground out ended the stanza.
Gomez finished 4-for-5 with five RBIs, while Valle added three hits in the contest. Yeager, Stafford and Semeniuk added two hits apiece in the winning effort.
Mason cruised through the first two innings, striking out the side in the first and allowing just one walk in the second frame before running into trouble in the third.
Gatrell pitched an inning of scoreless relief and allowed just one hit while Kiel went 1.1 innings, giving up a run while surrendering no hits.
Marshall returns to non-conference action Tuesday, April 21 with a game against Ohio University. First-pitch is slated for 3:00 p.m. ET at George T. Smailes Field at The Kennedy Center on Route 2 in Huntington.
