Feb. 24, 2008

Duke Completes Sweep Over Iona With Wins Of 10-1, 17-5

Nate Freiman hammered two home runs and drove in a combined nine RBI to lead the Duke baseball team to a pair of wins over Iona Sunday afternoon to clinch a four-game sweep over the Gaels at Jack Coombs Field.

Freiman went 5-for-9 over the two-game spread and scored four runs to lead Duke to wins of 10-1 and 17-5 over Iona. Three of his five hits went for extra bases, including a 2-for-4 two-home run effort in game one on Sunday. Freiman drove in seven total runs in the day's opener with two three-run homers and a sacrifice fly and followed with a pair of RBI in a 3-for-5 outing in game two. After four games, Freiman is batting .389 with a team-high nine RBI.

Sunday's doubleheader sweep over Iona (0-4) followed another two-game sweep over the Gaels on Saturday in which Duke won 10-2 and 10-0. Duke (4-0) outscored Iona 47-8 over the four-game spread while topping 10 runs in every game. The Blue Devils batted .369 for the series while holding Iona's hitters to a .212 clip. Duke's pitching staff now boasts a collective ERA of 2.00 while seven of 11 Blue Devil pitchers went at least one inning and now hold individual ERAs of 0.00.

Sophomore outfielder Alex Hassan had a tremendous series as well, going 8-for-15 with a home run, seven RBI, nine runs scored and 6-for-7 in stolen base attempts. Hassan had multiple hits in three of the four games and scored at least one run in each contest. Designated hitter and catcher Kyle Kreick matched Hassan with an 8-for-15 performance as well while driving in six runs and scoring eight. Four Blue Devils homered in the series, including Freiman (2), Hassan, and sophomores Jeremy Gould and Gabriel Saade. Both Saade and Freiman had four extra base hits, as Saade drove three doubles in addition to his leadoff long ball in the second game of the series. Saade and Hassan each contributed nine runs for the series, while Saade also came up safe in all four of his stolen base attempts.

No. 17 Virginia Thumps Lehigh Sunday in Game One of DH

David Adams (Jr., Margate, Fla.) swatted two home runs and drove in five runs, while Andrew Carraway (Jr., Marietta, Ga.) pitched six solid innings to propel the No. 17-ranked Virginia baseball team to a 12-1 win over Lehigh Sunday in game one of a doubleheader at Davenport Field.

Carraway put together a great start on the mound, going six innings while giving up just two hits. He struck out eight and did not walk a batter in earning the win. Lehigh starter Andrew Berger was saddled with the loss after giving up nine earned runs and six hits over 1.2 innings.

Phil Gosselin (Fr., West Chester, Pa.) went 3-for-4 for the Cavaliers, while Adams was 3-for-5 with three runs scored. Adams' two-homer performance was UVa's first since Mark Reynolds ripped two homers against Georgia Tech on March 12, 2004.

No. 17 Virginia Earns Four-Game Sweep over Lehigh

Virginia finished off a four-game sweep of Lehigh with a 6-1 win Sunday in the second game of a doubleheader at Davenport Field. The Cavaliers allowed just four runs in the series while outscoring the Mountain Hawks 27-4.

Tyler Cannon (So., Pigeon Forge, Tenn.) went 3-for-4 with two doubles for Virginia (4-0), while Dan Grovatt (Fr., Tabernacle, N.J.) went 2-for-4 with two runs scored and two RBI.

Virginia's pitching once again was excellent, as Cavalier hurlers surrendered just one run for the fourth straight game in the series. Jeff Lorick (So., Duluth, Ga.), Robert Morey (Fr., Virginia Beach, Va.) and Neal Davis (So., Baltimore, Md.) combined to hold the Mountain Hawks to a run and seven hits.

No. 2 Tar Heels Rally To Sweep Series At FAU

Sophomore right fielder Tim Fedroff lifted No. 2 North Carolina to an improbable 8-7 comeback win over Florida Atlantic Sunday with a go-ahead, two-run home run in the top of the ninth Sunday at FAU Stadium. The Tar Heels (3-0) trailed by three runs heading into the final frame but rallied to sweep the season-opening series from the Owls (0-3).

With FAU carrying a 7-4 lead, the Tar Heels homered twice and scored four runs in the top of the ninth to grab their first lead since the fourth inning. Catcher Tim Federowicz started the rally with a leadoff solo homer, and Ryan Grapel and Mark Fleury followed with back-to-back base hits to pull UNC within a run and set the stage for Fedroff. The Flagtown, N.J., then native sent the first pitch he saw from FAU closer Michael Obradovich (0-1) off the scoreboard in right field for an 8-7 UNC lead.

Freshman right-hander Nate Striz worked the ninth to record his first career save and lock up Carolina's sixth straight season-opening sweep. Classmate Ryan Leach (1-0) struck out three over 1 2/3 shutout innings to claim his first victory.

FSU Downs Duquesne 15-3 In Series Finale

Florida State (3-0) remained perfect on the season downing Duquesne (0-3) 15-3 on Sunday to sweep the weekend series. The Seminoles pounded out 15 hits for the second straight game including seven of the extra base variety, while freshman Mike McGee took a no hitter into the sixth inning in his first collegiate start to earn the victory. McGee also helped his cause at the plate going 3-for-4 with three RBIs and a run scored. Ohmed Danesh and Jason Stidham also contributed to the Seminole offense on Sunday as both student-athletes drove in three runs each.

McGee (1-0) was impressive in his first career start as he faced just two batters over the minimum through the first five innings of work. The freshman right hander did not allow a hit to the Dukes until the sixth when pinch hitter Pat Kimutis led off the inning with a double to the gap in right center. McGee finished the game going five plus innings allowing three runs on two hits. He walked four and struck out four as he threw 89 pitches.

For the second straight game, Danesh and Stidham drove in three runs as the Seminoles finished the weekend batting .423 as a team scoring 44 runs on 44 hits. The Seminoles registered a .865 slugging percentage as over half their hits went for extra bases.

Hernandez Fans Eight as No. 10 UM Sweeps Cincinnati, 8-0

Freshman left-hander Chris Hernandez tossed six shutout innings and struck out eight to earn his first career win and juniors Adan Severino and Jemile Weeks each homered as the No. 10 ranked University of Miami baseball team (3-0) cruised to an 8-0 win over Cincinnati Sunday afternoon at Mark Light Field to sweep the season-opening series over the Bearcats (0-2).

Hernandez, facing just three batters over the minimum in six innings, allowed just three hits and didn't walk a batter in his first start as a Hurricane. He recorded at least one strikeout in all six innings of work and allowed only one Bearcat to reach scoring position while he was on the mound.

Weeks and Severino each finished with two hits, including Severino's first career homer, a two-run shot in the sixth, and Weeks' solo blast that came in the seventh. Weeks also provided the first two runs of the afternoon with a two-RBI double in the fifth. Ryan Jackson and Mark Sobolewski also finished with two hits on the afternoon.

No. 25 Georgia Tech Completes Series Sweep of Youngstown State with 5-1 Win

Starter Zach Von Tersch and a trio of relievers held Youngstown State (0-3) to one run on five hits and Charlie Blackmon drove in the go-ahead run in the bottom of a four-run eighth inning as No. 25 Georgia Tech (3-0) completed a three-game sweep of the Penguins with a 5-1 win Sunday afternoon at Russ Chandler Stadium.

Von Tersch held Youngstown State to one run on four hits in six innings of work. He struck out five on the afternoon while issuing just one walk. Andrew Robinson, Brad Rulon and Chris Hicks all worked scoreless innings in relief to secure the sweep for the Yellow Jackets.

The one run marks the fewest given up in a three-game series by the Yellow Jackets in nearly 99 years, since outscoring Sewanee 21-1 in a three-game series May 14-15, 1909. It marks the only time in school history the Jackets have held an opponent to just one run in three nine-inning games, as two of Tech's contests against Sewanee were seven-inning games.

Youngstown State snapped a streak of 19.2 scoreless innings for the Yellow Jacket pitchers when Eric Marzec singled to lead off the second inning, moved to third on a single by Dustin Wachter and scored on an RBI single by Sean Lucas.

Boyd's, Tigers' Explosive Third Inning Helps #13 Tigers Complete Sweep of Mercer 10-3 on Sunday

Wilson Boyd highlighted a nine-run third inning with two home runs and red-shirt freshman Graham Stoneburner pitched 5.0 scoreless innings to lead #13 Clemson to a 10-3 victory over Mercer on Sunday afternoon in front of 4,064 fans at Doug Kingsmore Stadium.

The Tigers improved to 3-0 after completing the sweep, while the Bears fell to 0-3. Clemson scored 28 runs in the series, 16 of which came in the three combined third innings.

In his first outing as a Tiger, Stoneburner (1-0) pitched 5.0 scoreless innings, surrendering only three hits and one walk while striking out three to earn the win. The Richmond, VA native red-shirted last season after suffering a torn ACL during the preseason.

Boyd went 2-for-4 with two homers and four RBIs to lead the Tigers, who pounded out 12 hits. Three other Tigers had multiple hits, including Stan Widmann, John Hinson, and J.D. Burgess. John Dortch was 2-for-3 with two RBIs to lead Mercer at the plate.

NC State Baseball Takes Series over ASU with 14-4 Win on Sunday

Drew Martin had a career-high four hits and drove in three runs in leading NC State to a come-from-behind 14-4 victory over Appalachian State Sunday at Doak Field at Dail Park.

Martin was a perfect 4-for-4 on the afternoon, while Jeremy Synan (three RBI) and Nick Stanley (three runs) were each 2-for-4 in leading NC State (2-1) to score 13 unanswered runs after falling behind in the early innings.

The Wolfpack broke open a tight ball game with a five-run fifth inning to take a 9-3 lead. Tommy Foschi led the charge with a two-run double to left, while Synan, Martin and Domonique Rodgers each added RBI singles in the frame as the Pack batted around for the second straight inning.

Heading to the bottom of the fourth, Appalachian State (1-2) had a 3-0 lead when NC State got a rally going as the first three batters reached without the ball leaving the infield. Synan's chopper was misplayed by the shortstop allowing Nick Stanley to cross home plate with the Pack's first run.

After a fielder's choice groundout by Marcus Jones, the Pack pushed across its second run of the inning when Rodgers was plunked with the bases loaded. After another fielder's choice groundout with the bases full, Martin laced a double down the left-field line to give the Wolfpack its first lead of the afternoon, 4-3.

Boston College Baseball Falls to Georgia Southern, 18-6

The Boston College (2-1, 0-0 ACC) baseball team dropped the final game of a three-game series to Georgia Southern (1-2, 0-0 SoCon), 18-6, Sunday afternoon at J.I. Clements Stadium.

Barry Butera was the bright spot offensively for the Eagles. The second baseman registered a 3-for-5 day with a 2-run homer and three RBIs.

Eric Campbell added a RBI single for the Eagles.

BC senior Nick Asselin (0-1) suffered the loss. The right-handed starter allowed five runs in 2.1 innings of work

Terps Drop Sunday Matchup at Coastal Carolina

Junior Jensen Pupa (Germantown, Md./Montgomery College) pitched well in his first Division-I collegiate start, allowing no earned runs in a 5-3 Maryland loss at Coastal Carolina Sunday afternoon.

Pupa allowed four unearned runs in five innings, striking out three batters. With two on and two outs in the bottom of the first, Coastal's Tommy Baldridge hit a ground ball to the left of Terps second baseman Joe Palumbo (Bowie, Md./DeMatha). Palumbo fielded the ball cleanly, but his throw to first was low, evading first baseman Dan Benick (Glen Lyon, Pa./Nanticoke), allowing a run to score. On the very next pitch, Coastal Carolina catcher Dock Doyle made the Terps pay for the error, drilling a two-run homer to right-center field. The Chanticleers (2-0) added another run in the inning. However, Pupa rebounded nicely, keeping Maryland (1-2) in the game, retiring 12 of the last 14 batters he faced.

Wake Forest Baseball Falls at Pepperdine

Pepperdine earned a win in the rubber match of the three-game series with Wake Forest on Sunday afternoon by claiming a 22-3 win at Eddy D. Field Stadium.

Wake Forest is now 1-2 on the season while the Waves improved to 2-1.

The Waves built an 18-0 lead through the first five innings including a 10-run fourth in which Pepperdine sent 15 men to the plate. Pepperdine collected 23 base hits off seven different Demon Deacon pitchers.

Starter Charlie Mellies (0-1) was saddled with the loss. He went three innings and allowed nine hits and seven runs while striking out three.

Pitt hands Tech 12-8 loss

Pittsburgh scored runs in each of the first five innings and got a strong performance on the mound from Brian Chrisman to hand Virginia Tech a 12-8 loss Sunday morning in the IMICHotels.com INN-vitational at Watson Stadium.

Tech (1-1) out-hit the Panthers 13-11 in the game, but the pitching of Chrisman and a Pitt running game that produced eight stolen bases were too hard to overcome, especially when the Hokies chipped in six walks, six wild pitches, five hit batters, three errors and two passed balls.

Coastal Carolina edges Hokies 4-3

Coastal Carolina manufactured runs in the sixth and eight innings to post a 4-3 victory over Virginia Tech in the IMICHotels.com INN-vitational at Watson Stadium on Sunday evening.

Coastal broke a 2-2 tie in the bottom of the sixth inning. Right fielder Scott Woodward drew a lead-off walk and then proceeded to steal second and third base. He scored the go-ahead run on a sacrifice fly by catcher Jose Iglesias. The Chants added what proved to be a much-needed insurance run in the eight inning when designated hitter Tommy Baldridge double, moved to third on an error and scored on a wild pitch.