Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell University
Richmond
Vanderbeck's Ninth-Inning Home Run Lifts Bucknell Baseball to 4-3 Win at Richmond
2/27/2011 7:00:00 AM | Baseball
Feb. 27, 2011
RICHMOND, Va. - Freshman Colby Vanderbeck (Simsbury, Conn./Simsbury) led off the top of the ninth inning with a solo home run to break a 3-3 deadlock and propel the Bucknell baseball team to a 4-3 victory at Richmond Sunday afternoon at Pitt Field. It was the second straight win for the Bison, who claimed the rubber game of the three-game weekend series that saw all three contests decided by two or fewer runs.
All four of Bucknell's (2-5) runs came via the home run as Doug Shribman (Marblehead, Mass./Belmont Hill School) hit a solo shot in the fourth and Bob Donato (Williamsport, Pa./Williamsport Area) homered for the fourth consecutive game when he hit a two-out, two-run home run to center in the fifth. Shribman's round-tripper was the 30th of his career, tying him with former teammate Andrew Brouse for the most in program history.
Vanderbeck, who made his first career start at designated hitter, was 3-for-4 with two runs scored in the contest. He entered the game 1-for-2 on the season. Donato also collected three hits, marking the second time this year he has done that.
Reliever Steve Carlin (Edmond, Okla./Edmond Memorial) (1-0) earned the victory for Bucknell as he retired six of the seven hitters he faced after entering the game one batter into the eighth inning.
Senior All-Patriot Leaguer Dylan Seeley (Shavertown, Pa./Wyoming Seminary) started on the mound for the Bison and pitched into the seventh inning. He gave up 11 hits and yielded just the three runs while striking out five and walking none. Seeley has walked just one hitter in 9.1 innings this year.
Six of Richmond's 11 hits off Seeley came in the fifth and sixth innings, which is when the Spiders plated all three of their runs. Three straight one-out singles by Nick Poulos, Mike Small and Robby Massar cut Bucknell's lead to 3-1. Two batters later a single by Jacob Mayers scored Small to cut the Bison advantage to just one.
A two-out RBI single by Small that followed a hit by pitch and a bunt single evened the score at 3-3 in the bottom of the sixth. Small, who was 3-for-4, was one of four Spiders to produce a multi-hit game. Richmond accumulated 12 hits compared to 10 for the Bison.
Bucknell and Richmond (3-5) combined for 21 runs in the three-game weekend series, quite a difference from last weekend when the Bison and James Madison plated a total of 127 runs in a four-game series. Bucknell's ERA against the Spiders was a solid 2.42 with five different hurlers recording 0.00 ERAs.
With his recent home run outburst, Donato is just two shy of equaling his career high of six. He leads the team in batting average (.367), at bats (30), runs (8), hits (11), home runs (4) and slugging percentage (.800).
The Bison will be back in action next weekend when they play a four-game series at VMI. Each of Bucknell's first 11 games of the 2011 campaign will be played in Virginia.
