Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell University
Illinois
Bucknell Baseball Back on Winning Side with 8-7 Victory Over Illinois
3/18/2010 8:00:00 AM | Baseball
March 18, 2010
WINTER HAVEN, Fla. - A one-out, bases-loaded ground out by Gerald Runyan in the bottom of the eighth pushed across what proved to be the winning run as the Bucknell baseball team defeated Illinois 8-7 Thursday afternoon at Chain of Lakes Park. The victory helped the Bison improve to 9-3 in their last 12 games, including 4-1 on their seven-game trip to Florida.
Doug Shribman led the way for Bucknell with a 3-for-4 day at the plate. He also reached base on an error and walked. Ben Allen, Bob Donato, Andrew Brouse and Scott Reed each had two hits apiece as those five players accounted for all 11 of the team's hits.
The Bison were forced to use six pitchers in the contest. The final four hurlers limited the Illini to two hits and one unearned run over the final six innings of play. Matt Lamore, who pitched the final two innings, striking out two and walking one, earned his second win of the season and improved to 2-0.
Both teams scored early and often as in the first four innings of play, the only half-inning that did not feature at least one run was the Illini's top of the second. After an unearned Illinois run in the top of the first, Bucknell plated three runs in the bottom of the inning. Allen led off with a double, and after consecutive outs by Donato and B.J. LaRosa, Brouse, Reed and Shribman hit three consecutive doubles off Illinois starter Will Strack, who was 6-1 overall last year and 4-0 opposite Big Ten opponents. The Bison touched him for nine hits and seven runs in his four-plus innings of work.
Bucknell's lead ballooned to 5-1 after a sacrifice bunt by Allen moved David Duffett and Robb Scott into scoring position. Donato followed with a two-run single, making him the sixth Bison to reach double figures in RBIs this season.
Illinois (3-8) chipped away at the lead as Bucknell starter Eric Jarrett, who allowed five baserunners in the first two innings, struggled in the third with three of the first four hitters reaching. He left the game with the bases loaded in favor of freshman Marcus Garone, who immediately coaxed a popout from No. 5 hitter Casey McMurray. However, the next hitter, Brandon Hohl, had a hard single up the middle, past Garone and into center field, scoring a pair.
Garone struggled in the fourth as the first four hitters reached base on two singles, a hit by pitch and a two-run double by Mike Giller. Giller was the last hitter Garone faced. The rest of the Bison bullpen was solid, though, as Illinois tied the score at 6-6 with a sacrifice fly and later tied it again at 7-7 in the sixth with an unearned run. That was all the Illini offense could manage against the combination of Daniel Hart, Michael Dallanegra, Andrew Clarke and Lamore.
Bucknell took a 7-6 lead in the fourth inning after Allen led off with a triple off the wall in right center and later scored on a LaRosa sac fly.
With the score tied 7-7 in the bottom of the seventh, Illinois committed three of its four errors to load the bases for the Bison, who hit the ball out of the infield only once in the inning. Donato ripped an apparent two-run double just inside of first base, but it was ruled foul. On the next pitch Donato flew out to right, stranding all three runners as the score remained tied.
Bucknell's first two hitters in the eighth reached and Shribman's walk loaded the bases with just one out. Brian de la Torriente (0-3) was lifted for Mike Sterk, who was brought in to face Runyan. Runyan hit a semi-hard grounder into the hole at shortstop. The Illini nearly turned what would have been an impressive double play, but Runyan beat the throw to first, allowing Brouse to score what proved to be the winning run.
Runyan and pinch runner Mark Figgie did try a first-and-third double steal, but Figgie was gunned down at home, ending the inning with the Bison up 8-7.
Lamore then retired Illinois 1-2-3 in the ninth, marking only the second time in the game either team went down in order.
La Rosa, who missed Wednesday's loss to Dartmouth, was 0-for-2 with a sac fly, hit by pitch and walk, ending his career-best 13-game hitting streak.
Thanks to six more runs in the first three innings Thursday, Bucknell has now scored 67 of its 145 runs this season in the first third of the game. Opponents have 46 runs in the first three innings.
Despite eight walks, including five by Jarrett, the Bison still have a nearly 2-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio this year (109-to-56).
Bucknell picked up its first one-run victory of the season. It had been 0-2 in one-run games this year.
The Bison will face another Big Ten team on Friday when it takes on No. 27 Ohio State at 1:30 p.m. at Chain of Lakes Park.
