April 19, 2008

Box Score

BRIDGEPORT, CT - Freshman Jack Wagoner (Berlin, CT) three a complete game in the opener, allowing just three hits and one unearned run, to help the Sacred Heart baseball team split a Northeast Conference doubleheader with visiting Mount St. Mary's Saturday afternoon.

Sacred Heart, 5-29 overall and 3-8 in the NEC, jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first inning of the opener thanks to RBI singles by Paul Schmidt and Chris Whittemore, and a Mount error on a ball hit by Ryan Lynch.

The Pioneers made it 4-0 in the second when Justin Mulrain led off with a triple to right field and Phil Tantillo followed with a sacrifice fly. With two outs in the inning, Mount starter Marshall Thomason hit Tyler Santos with a pitch and was lifted from the game. Kent Worthington came on in relief and retired the next five Pioneers.

The Mountaineers got on the board with an unearned run in the top of the fourth inning on a pair of Pioneer errors.

SHU got the run back in the bottom of the frame with an RBI single by JJ Edwards that scored Mulrain who had singled and stole second.

The Mountaineers threatened in the seventh inning when Matt Staso reached on a one-out error. He went to second on a bunt by Matt Eiden. Wagoner hit pinch hitter Ryan Stamp with a pitch with two outs to put two on. He got Shane Eyler to ground out to Edwards at third to end the game and give Wagoner his second win of the season.

Wagoner threw 117 pitches in the win, striking out seven and walking two. Thomason took the loss to drop to 2-3.

The Mount took a 1-0 lead in the first inning of game two on an RBI ground out by Ryan Murray that scored Eyler who led off the game with a single. Eiden had an RBI single in the second to give the Mountaineers a 2-0 edge.

The Pioneers cut the lead in half in the bottom of the third when Mike Drowne led off with a double and scored on a single by Edwards.

The Mountaineers went up 3-1 with a disputed run in the fifth. Eyler led off with a double and went to third on a sacrifice bunt by Eiden. Drew Counselman lifted a fly ball to center that was caught by Mulrain. Eyler tagged at third and Mulrain's throw beat him to the plate. SHU catcher Greg DePalma made the tag but then dropped the ball when he tried to show the umpire he had control. The umpire ruled he dropped the ball during the tag and the run scored.

A Counselman error and a Tantillo sacrifice fly in the bottom of the fifth got the Pioneers back within a run.

Mount starter Brett Moore finished a scoreless sixth inning and was lifted for Mike Matta in the seventh. Matta retired the Pioneers in order to earn his first save of the season and help Moore pick up his first win.

SHU started Jared Balback went the route and allowed seven hits and three runs. He struck out four and walked just one.

The two teams will complete the four-game series with a single game at 11 am.