Marshall University Athletics
No. 3 Houston Eliminates Seventh-Seeded Marshall, 4-1
5/21/2009 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
May 21, 2009
HATTIESBURG, Miss. - Sophomore right-handed pitcher Shane Farrell tossed six strikeouts in 7.1 innings but a three-run eighth inning by third-seeded Houston lifted the Cougars to a hard-fought 4-1 victory over No. 7 Marshall, eliminating the Thundering Herd from the 2009 Conference USA Baseball Championship tournament at Pete Taylor Park on Thursday.
With the loss, Marshall concludes its season with a 22-32 overall record. Houston meanwhile moves on to face the loser of Thursday's contest between No. 2 Rice and No. 6 UAB.
Trailing 4-1 in the bottom of the ninth, red-shirt freshman Rhett Stafford drew a leadoff walk before being forced out at second on a one-out fielder's choice by sophomore catcher Kevin Shackelford. A walk to sophomore shortstop Kenny Socorro put the tying run at the plate, and a passed ball moved the runners into scoring position. From there, a groundout to second sealed the contest for Houston.
Houston reliever Chase Dempsay pitched 3.1 frames of scoreless baseball en route to the victory to move to 4-0 on the season. Farrell suffered the loss and finishes the season at 1-7 overall. Cougar closer Donnie Joseph tossed the final stanza to record his 10th save of the season.
In the bottom of the second, senior centerfielder Nate Lape tagged a one-out two-bagger to left field and then raced to third when Stafford ripped a ball through the right side of the infield. Houston second baseman Taylor White made a tremendous stop and threw to first, barely getting Stafford out and saving a run. From there, a groundout ended the inning and kept the contest scoreless through two frames.
In the bottom of the third, Marshall put a pair of runners in scoring position when sophomore shortstop Kenny Socorro smacked a one-out single into left field and then moved to third on a two-base fielding error by Houston, placing senior right fielder Adam Yeager on second. A groundout by senior second baseman Brandon Casamassima allowed Socorro to come around with the Herd's first run of the tournament, moving Yeager to third, but a fly out ended the frame with the score at 1-0.
The lead didn't last long as the Cougars responded in the top of the fourth when Caleb Ramsey laced a one-out triple into right center, and then sprinted home on a groundout by Dempsay knotting the game at 1-1. A groundout to first base ended the inning.
The Herd received base hits from sophomore first baseman Victor Gomez and Stafford in the bottom of the fourth but could not put the go-ahead run across the plate.
In the top of the fifth, Chris Wallace and David Murphy notched back-to-back singles for Houston before Farrell fanned the next two batters and used a groundout to strand the runners in place.
In the home half of the fifth, Yeager poked a one-out base hit into centerfield and then moved to second on a groundout. Junior third baseman Josh Valle then earned a free pass which chased Houston starter Wes Musick from the game in favor of Dempsay who induced an inning-ending groundout.
In the top of the eighth, Jake Runte smacked a leadoff double into left centerfield and scampered to third on a fielding error, placing the go-ahead run just 90 feet away for the Cougars. A groundout gave the Herd one out in the inning before an intentional walk to Blake Kelso placed runners on the corners. That brought in Marshall left-handed reliever Ryan Kiel. A perfectly spotted bunt single allowed Runte to score from third, giving Houston a 2-1 edge. The Cougars then executed a double steal, giving Houston two more runners in scoring position before a walk loaded the bases, chasing Kiel from the contest in favor of Herd flame-thrower Austin Coan. A walk to Dempsay brought in the second run of the inning, giving Houston a 3-1 lead. Coan tossed a strikeout, but a second bases loaded walk upped the advantage to 4-1 before a groundout ended the inning.
In the bottom of the eight, Gomez singled to right field with one-out but a 6-4-3 double play ended a fifth consecutive scoreless inning for the Cougars.
Yeager, Gomez, Lape and Socorro notched two hits apiece while Casamassima drove in the team's only run as the Herd out-hit Houston 9-6 in the losing effort.
Farrell was stellar on the hill, tossing 7.1 frames, scattering four hits and striking out six. He pitched six scoreless stanzas but was responsible for three Houston runs, one in the fourth and two in the eighth.
