Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell University
Lehigh
Bucknell Baseball Splits Doubleheader with Lehigh by Taking Game Two, 7-5
4/2/2006 8:00:00 AM | Baseball
April 2, 2006
Game 1 Box Score
Game 2 Box Score
LEWISBURG, Pa. - After coming up just short with a seventh inning rally in game one and falling 7-5, the Bucknell baseball team escaped a sweep by defeating Lehigh 7-5 in game two at Depew Field on Sunday afternoon. The Bison picked up their first Patriot League win of the year and improved to 8-17 overall (1-3 PL), while the Mountain Hawks move to 13-16, 3-1 in the Patriot League.
In game two, Lehigh took the lead early with two runs in the first after Joe Ercolano knocked a leadoff double, Matt McBride walked with one out and David Moscow drove both runners in with a hard single through the left side.
Bucknell put its first runs of the game on the board in the third to tie the score at two. Senior Chris Grandizio (Bloomsburg, Pa./Bloomsburg) reached base with a leadoff single and stole second. Then senior Matt Capece (Bowie, Md./DeMatha Catholic) followed with an RBI double to right center and later scored on an error.
The Mountain Hawks promptly climbed back out in front with a run in the top of the fourth as Mike Sandonato singled to right with one out and then came home on a triple to right by Liam O'Connor. However, Bucknell tied the score in the bottom half of the inning with an RBI groundout by sophomore Shawn Hirsch (Morristown, N.J./Morristown) to plate classmate Jason Buursma (Seattle, Wash./Lakeside School) who led off with a double.
The teams traded runs once again in the fifth. McBride scored Lehigh's fourth run of the contest on an error after reaching with a single and junior Ryan Gryskevicz (Dallas, Pa./Dallas) doubled down the left field line and evened the score for the Bison by crossing the plate on a passed ball.
In the bottom of the sixth, Bucknell took its first lead of the game when Grandizio doubled with one out and scored on an RBI single by Capece. The Orange and Blue then extended its advantage to 6-4 in the seventh as Gryskevicz punched a single into right center and came home on a sacrifice fly by sophomore Chris Pieper (Port Washington, N.Y./Schreiber).
The Mountain Hawks trimmed their deficit down to one in the eighth with an RBI single to left by O'Connor, that plated Mark Bernhard, but senior Chris Brannan (Huntington Beach, Calif./Edison) gave Bucknell back its two-run cushion by bringing in classmate Brad Duvall (Hampstead, Md./Hereford) with a sacrifice fly.
Brannan went 3-for-4 in game two and, along with Gryskevicz, finished the day hitting 4-for-7 to lead the Bison hitters. Brannan also contributed two RBI and a run scored, while Gryskevicz had two doubles, three runs scored and an RBI. Grandizio batted 4-for-8 in the doubleheader with a double, an RBI and two runs scored and Capece was 4-for-9 with a double, two RBI and a run scored. O'Connor and McBride contributed four hits apiece for Lehigh. O'Connor hit 5-for-7 over the two games with a triple, three RBI and a run scored and McBride went 5-for-8 with an RBI and a run scored.
Junior Nathan Mittag (Fairfield, Conn./Fairfield) started the second game for Bucknell and pitched 7.1 innings to record the victory (2-3). He allowed five runs, four earned, on eight hits with three walks and five strikeouts. Buursma relieved him and registered his third save of the year after throwing 1.2 scoreless innings and surrendering three this with no walks and two strikeouts. Campbell suffered the loss (0-1) for Lehigh as he let up three runs on six hits with two walks and one strikeout over three innings of work. Mountain Hawks' starter Billy Alec tossed five innings and allowed four runs, two earned, on eight hits with one walk and three strikeouts.
In the first game of the twinbill, Bucknell came up just short in its late inning rally after scoring three in the seventh and one run in both the fifth and the sixth innings.
The Mountain Hawks scored three times in the top of the third then added two more in the fifth to jump out to a 5-0 lead before the Bison broke up the shutout with a run in the bottom of the inning after Duvall drove a leadoff single up the middle and came home on an error.
Lehigh stretched its lead to 7-1 with two in the sixth as Moscow reached with a walk to begin the inning and scored on a single by O'Connor and Bernhard came home on an error for the second run of the inning.
The Bison would not quit, cutting the deficit to five in the bottom of the sixth with a single to left by Grandizio to plate Brannan who began the inning with a single. The squad then added three more in the bottom of the seventh. Senior Kyle Walter (Mifflinburg, Pa./Mifflinburg Area) and Gryskevicz hit back-to-back doubles, making it a 7-3 game, while Gryskevicz scored the next run on a sacrifice fly by Buursma. Pieper singled and came home on a single down the left field line by Brannan. Sophomore Austin Turban (Northfield, Ill./New Trier) then walked to set up runners on first and second for Grandizio, but Mountain Hawks' hurler Geoff Campbell escaped the jam by getting him to line into a double play to end the game.
Sophomore Mathew Wilson (Toronto, Ontario/Northern S.S.) started and took the loss (0-2) for the Orange and Blue in the opening contest as he pitched five innings and allowed six runs on eight hits with two walks and one strikeout. Freshman Sean Driscoll (Colts Neck, N.J./Christian Brothers Academy) relieved him and pitched two innings and allowed one unearned run on six hits with no walks and one strikeout. Joe Matteo started for Lehigh and earned the win (2-3) after allowing five runs, two earned, on 12 hits with two walks and six strikeouts. Campbell picked up his second save of the season, pitching two-thirds of an inning without surrendering a hit and walking one.
Bucknell will conclude its eight-game homestand with a contest against Susquehanna on Tuesday, April 4, at Depew Field, slated for 3:30 p.m.
