Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell University
Eastern Kentucky
Walk-Off Home Run by Eastern Kentucky Hands Bucknell Baseball First Loss of Florida Trip, 9-8
3/10/2009 8:00:00 AM | Baseball
March 10, 2009
WINTER HAVEN, Fla. - Eastern Kentucky's Jayson Langfels capped a 4-for-5 day with a walk-off solo home run on the second pitch of the bottom of the ninth inning as the Colonels won a wild 9-8 baseball game over Bucknell Tuesday morning at Chain of Lakes Park. The win snapped a two-game winning streak for the Bison, who lost for the first time during their Spring Break trip to Florida.
The contest was a wild one as the first five innings were played in just over an hour. The final four innings, during which 16 of the game's 17 runs were scored, took nearly twice as long. Bucknell (2-8) also overcame a three-run deficit to tie the game at 8-8 in the top of the ninth as it tallied six of its eight runs in the final two frames.
The Bison, who registered at least nine hits for the sixth consecutive game, pounded out 12 hits, while Eastern Kentucky (4-5) had 16. Thirteen of the Colonels' hits were singles. They had just one hit in the second through fifth innings, meaning 14 came in the first, sixth, seventh and eighth innings.
Trailing 6-2 entering the top of the eighth, Bucknell put three runs on the board in the eighth. Ben Allen (Port Royal, Pa./Juniata), who saw his hitting streak end at eight games, was grazed by a pitch to lead things off. He came around to score on a one-out single by Andrew Brouse (Kreamer, Pa./Midd-West), who was 2-for-4 with three runs batted in, all in the final two innings. Doug Shribman (Marblehead, Mass./Belmont Hill) followed with a walk to load the bases. Eastern Kentucky then went to its third pitcher of the game, Greg Terry, who got Drew Constable (West Chester, Pa./Henderson) to fly to left, but Ryan Faidley dropped the routine fly ball, allowing Dane Grandizio (Bloomsburg, Pa./Bloomsburg) to scamper home with the second run of the inning. Andrew Loucks (Mississauga, Ontario/Appleby College) rounded out the scoring in the inning with a sacrifice fly to left, making the score 6-5.
Against Russell Seidell (Granville, Ohio/Granville), Bucknell's third pitcher of the game, Eastern Kentucky hit a double, two singles and a hit by pitch, all with one out and plating one run in the process. Bison head coach Gene Depew, who earned his 500th career win on Monday, brought in Jack Boehm (Winnetka, Ill./New Trier), who got out of the bases-loaded jam by coaxing a sacrifice fly and a flyout. However, the two runs made it 8-5.
Bucknell knocked Terry from the game when pinch hitter B.J. LaRosa (Jacksonville, Fla./Episcopal) led off with a single to right followed by Allen's second hit by pitch in as many innings. Ben Yoder, who posted a team-high three hits in the game, then hit a roller through the right side to load the bases. After a strikeout by Grandizio, who was at the plate representing the go-ahead run, Brouse laced a double just inside of third base, scoring two runs. An intentional walk by new reliever David Owens (1-0) loaded the bases to set up a potential double play, but Constable hit a short fly to center that scored Yoder with the tying run. Center fielder Matt Davis' throw was slightly up the third base line.
Depew then turned to Shribman (0-1), who had played first base the first eight innings, to head to the mound in the bottom of the ninth. His second pitch was hit over the left field wall by Langfels to end the contest.
Both starting pitchers hurled very effectively in the early innings. Bucknell starter Dylan Seeley (Shavertown, Pa./Wyoming Seminary) went 6.0 innings, yielded nine hits, five runs and struck out one while walking one. Three of those hits came in the first inning, but he settled down and allowed just three baserunners, two of which were erased when trying to steal, from the second to the fifth inning. He then yielded singles to the first four hitters in the seventh, but battled back to retire the final three hitters in the frame.
Eastern Kentucky starter Jim Clancy lasted two outs into the seventh and ended up scattering seven hits and two walks. He gave up two earned runs and struck out four. He faced just one over the minimum through the first five innings.
Yoder, Brouse and Loucks, who was 2-for-4 with one RBI, posted multiple-hit games for the Bison.
The top of the Colonels lineup was strong as four of the first five hitters recorded at least two hits. The second through fifth hitters combined to go 10-for-17 with seven RBIs in the win.
The game featured four caught stealings and one pickoff. Additionally, there were four different batters hit by a pitch a combined five times. Both teams also committed two errors, with Bucknell capitalizing with a pair of unearned runs in the eighth.
The Bison will continue their week-long Spring Break trip with a 3:30 p.m. game against Toledo on Wednesday.
