University of Toledo
Youngstown State
Toledo Split Doubleheader at Inaugural PSC Panther Classic
3/19/2011 2:37:00 AM | Baseball
Junior INF Joe Corfman (3-for-7, 3 RBI) and junior OF Ben Hammer (3-for-4, 2 RS, RBI) paced the Rockets with three hits each in the twinbill.
In Game One, the Penguins scored single tallies in the seventh and eighth frames to claim the one-run triumph. Freshman LHP Ryan Wilkinson (0-1), the second of three UT pitchers, was tagged with the loss. Wilkinson gave up one run on one hit in 1.0 inning of relief.
Toledo received a quality start from sophomore RHP Mike Hamann against YSU, allowing three runs on nine hits and seven strikeouts in 6.2 innings. For the season, Hamann has yielded only four walks with a team-high 37 punchouts in 36.2 frames.
UT looked good early and opened the scoring in today's first contest with a RBI single off the bat of Hammer in the second inning.
Youngstown State quickly countered with single tallies in the third and fifth frames on the strength of a solo home run and a RBI triple by David Leon to take a 2-1 lead.
Toledo knotted the score at 2-2 in the sixth inning on a sacrifice fly by Corfman, but YSU quickly reclaimed the advantage with a run in the seventh. The Penguins' Neil Schroth hit a leadoff triple and came home shortly after on a sacrifice fly.
Toledo fought back and tied the score again in the seventh when senior INF Chris Dudics collected a clutch two-out single.
Unfortunately for the Rockets, they were unable to sustain the momentum and Youngstown State's Armani Johnson registered an infield single off UT freshman RHP Adam Tyson to bring home the eventual game-winning tally.
Junior INF Matt Delewski (2-for-4, RS) and Hammer led the home team on the scoreboard with two hits apiece.
The Penguins' Robert Switka was credited with his first collegiate victory, yielding three runs (two earned) on eight hits in 7.0 innings. Padraic Williams came on in relief and tossed the final two frames to earn his second save of the season.
In Game Two, the Rockets did the late damage and plated three runs over the final three innings against the Purple Eagles to snap a five-game losing skid.
Junior RHP Alex Radon (3-1), the second of three UT pitchers in the nightcap, picked up the victory. Radon worked 1.0 scoreless inning of relief to collect his squad-best third win of the season.
Senior RHP Matt Zahel worked the final frame and helped the Rockets' maintain their lead to earn his team-high third save in 2011.
For the second-straight game, UT scored first with a run on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Corfman in the third inning.
After spotting Niagara two tallies in the fourth frame on RBI groundouts, each team plated a run in the sixth to make the score 3-2. The Rockets plated their tally on a run-scoring triple by freshman OF Jacob North, while the Purple Eagles also took advantage of a three-base hit and an error to maintain the lead.
In the game-changing seventh inning, Toledo collected three hits against a pair of NU pitchers to assume its first advantage of the non-league contest. UT sent six batters to the plate and utilized a RBI single by sophomore pinch hitter Andy Mix and a sacrifice fly by senior Jim Vahalik to make the score 4-3.
The Rockets added to the lead in the ninth inning on a RBI single off the bat of Corfman, before Niagara strung together one run on three hits in the bottom of the ninth and had runners on second and third base with outs against Zahel, but the Rockets close dug deep and forced the next two batters to ground out and preserve the win.
Toledo received another impressive start from junior LHP Kyle Shaw, yielding three runs (one earned) on six hits with four strikeouts in 7.0 innings.
Corfman (2-for-4, 2 RBI) and North (2-for-4, RBI) fueled the UT's offense with two hits each.
Niagara's Cody Lillich (0-2) was saddled with the loss, giving up two runs (one earned) on three hits in 0.1 innings.
The Rockets return to action tomorrow with a single game against the host Panthers at 6:00 p.m.
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