Marshall University Athletics
Marshall University
Samford
Baseball's Late Rally Defeats Samford, 10-6
2/21/2010 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Feb. 21, 2010
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - A four-run two-out rally in the top of the eighth proved to be the difference, while Isaac Ballou was a homer shy of the cycle, as the Marshall University baseball team earned a 10-6 victory against Samford at Joe Lee Griffin Field on Sunday afternoon.
The game was a seesaw battle entering the eighth frame of the day. After SU reliever Josh Martin (0-1) retired the first two batters, Josh Valle and Victor Gomez each smacked singles to put Herd runners on the corners. Cleanup hitter Thor Meeks delivered a two-out, two-strike double into the left-center field gap to plate Valle and take a one run edge.
SU (2-2) elected to intentionally walk Kurt Lipton to load the bases for Nathan Gomez, who had entered the previous inning as a defensive replacement. The freshman left-handed hitter roped a double to the opposite field clearing the bases that helped secure a series split with the Bulldogs.
Ballou, who entered the game with just one hit in the series, contributed a break-out contest, going 3-for-6 and a trio of RBI.
V. Gomez, Meeks and Alfredo Brito all collected two hits for Marshall (2-2) as the team totaled 13 base knocks as a club.
Overshadowed by the offense was the relief work of right-hander Mike Cavalli (1-0) in place of starter Ryan Kiel. The junior, who made his first collegiate appearance for the Herd, worked 4.0 innings out of the pen allowing just one earned run on three hits with a pair of strikeouts.
Mason Meredeth went 4-for-5 for the Bulldogs in the loss.
On the second pitch of the game, leadoff hitter Ballou roped a double to the right field corner off Samford starter Andrew Jones. V. Gomez would later bring Ballou home on a RBI groundout to put the Herd up, 1-0, after a half inning of play.
The lead was short lived as SU's Meredeth lined a two-out triple off the right-center field wall. David Schulze followed with a RBI single up the middle, just out of the reach of Herd starter Kiel to even the score.
After the Herd went down in order in the second, SU responded by breaking the tie when ninth-place hitter Brandon Moss knocked in a base runner on a fielder's choice.
Kenny Socorro continued his early season dominance of doubles, lacing a two-bagger, his third of the series, just over third base with one out in the third frame. V. Gomez smoked a two-out single back up the box to plate Socorro to level the score, 2-2. Meeks tapped an infield single to load the bases, but SU's Jones struck out Lipton to avoid further damage.
The score continued to teeter-totter back and forth, as the Bulldogs retook the advantage by recording four-straight hits, which accounted for three runs in the bottom of the third to be up 5-2.
MU answered right back in top of the fourth with a three-spot of its own. Brito began the big inning for the Herd, lacing a double over the head of the SU right fielder. Following an infield single by Eric Semeniuk, Kris Hecktor plated Brito. After a MU strikeout, Ballou rocketed a triple to right field, scoring two more runs to knot the game, 5-5.
Again, Samford snapped another even score when Stephen Ballard came home on a fielder's choice from Trey Hayes.
In the top of the sixth, Ballou collected his third hit of the game when he slapped a single that ricocheted into center field off the second baseman, allowing pinch runner Kirby Pellant to scamper home, tying the game for the fourth time, 6-6.
Following the four-run scoring spurt in the eighth, Tyler Gatrell and Kyle Blank combine to keep the Bulldogs off the scoreboard in the bottom half of the frame.
Closer Austin Coan worked the ninth and caught the final batter of the game looking for the second straight game to secure the 10-6 win.
The Herd is off until next Friday when the team travels to Charleston, S.C. to compete in The Citadel Tournament. The tournament field includes Radford, Saint Joseph's and tournament host, The Citadel.
