Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell University
Army
Strong Pitching, Big Innings Lead Bucknell Baseball to Doubleheader Sweep of Army, 8-4 & 7-4
4/30/2011 8:00:00 AM | Baseball
April 30, 2011
LEWISBURG, Pa. - On Senior Day at a sunny Depew Field on Saturday, the Bucknell baseball team received a pair of strong pitching performances and put together three big innings for a majority of its runs as it swept a doubleheader from Army by scores of 8-4 and 7-4. The Bison scored seven runs in the first two innings of game one and plated six runs in the fifth inning of game two, while the Black Knights never registered more than two runs in an inning.
With the sweep, Bucknell (23-25, 9-9 Patriot League) is in a third-place tie with Lafayette in the league standings entering the final day of the regular season. Navy (11-7) holds a one-game lead over second-place Army (10-8). The top four teams in the six-team league qualify for the postseason tournament. A sweep of Sunday's doubleheader against the Black Knights will guarantee a fourth consecutive PL Tournament berth for the Bison, who can also get in with zero or one win depending on the outcomes of other games.
Bucknell totaled 18 hits in the doubleheader with Bob Donato going 4-for-8 and Doug Shribman posting a 3-for-8 twinbill with a pair of RBIs, bringing him to within eight of the program's all-time record. Gerry Runyan, David Duffett and Scott Reed each had two hits in the nightcap. Reed extended his team-high hitting streak to seven games, while Shribman and Travis Clark have now each hit in six in a row.
Ryan Ebner improved to 6-1 this season in the opener as he notched his second complete game of the year. He allowed four runs, but none of them were earned as the Bison defense committed three errors. Ebner saw his ERA drop to 4.01 as he struck out five and walked just one in his 7.0 innings of work.
Bucknell jumped out to an early 7-2 lead in game one with three runs in the first and four more in the second before Army (18-23, 10-8 PL) starter Logan Lee (3-8) settled down. The left-hander retired just three of the first 14 hitters he faced, but then proceeded to retire 10 in a row and limit the Bison to one run and two hits over his final 4.0+ innings.
Bucknell scored all three first-inning runs with two outs as Donato and Shribman posted back-to-back one-out singles. Duffett then hit a two-out fly ball to left that Shaun Wixted misplayed into a three-base error that led to two runs. Reed then followed with a hard-hit single through the left side, scoring Duffett. The Bison left the bases loaded in the inning after batting around.
The first five Bucknell hitters reached base in the second and four of them came around to score. A two-run double by Shribman, a ground out by Reed and a sac fly by Matt Lamore concluded the scoring in the frame and made it 7-2.
The lead jumped to 8-2 in the fifth when Lamore walked, moved to third on a double by Clark and then scored on a ground out by Robb Scott as the Bison's final three runs were scored on outs.
Army scored two runs in the second as J.T. Watkins led off the inning by reaching on a catcher's interference call. He moved to third on an error and later scored on a ground out. Pederson, who reached with a bunt single and moved around the bases on an error, touched home on a wild pitch.
The Black Knights touched Ebner for at least one hit in every inning, but only twice did more than one hitter reach base in a frame.
Army scored two more runs in the sixth when leadoff hitter Clint Moore reached on an error. He later scored an unearned run on a single by Pederson, while Ben Koenigsfeld singled and later scored on a bases-loaded grounder to first where Shribman gunned down Peterson at second.
In game two, Bucknell scored all the runs it would need in a six-run fifth inning. The Bison sent 10 hitters to the plate and five of the six runs ended up unearned as Army third baseman Steve May committed a two-out error on a Shribman grounder that would have ended the inning with no runs.
Following Shribman's grounder that enabled Clark to score the first run of the inning, Runyan hit a looping triple over the head of the first baseman, scoring two runs. He then scored on a single by Duffett, while Clark drove in two more with a hard-hit single through the left side. Overall, Bucknell collected five of its 10 hits in the inning.
Another key to the win was Alex Cillo's pitching. He was on the mound for the final 4.0 innings and held Army without a run after allowing one inherited runner to score. He allowed just four hits and struck out three, lowering his season ERA to a team-best 2.37. He also earned his first save of the season.
Bucknell's defense turned a pair of double plays behind Cillo and one behind starter Dylan Seeley (2-6), ending Black Knight rallies in the fifth, sixth and seventh innings.
Seeley scattered seven hits in his five innings of work to earn his 15th career win, moving him into a tie for fifth on the Bison all-time list.
Nick Dignacco (0-2) suffered the loss for Army as he pitched 4.2 innings and was charged with seven hits and six runs, only one of which was earned.
Prior to the game, Bucknell's seven seniors - Steve Carlin, Drew Constable, Trey Frahler, Daniel Hart, Eric Jarrett, Dylan Seeley and Doug Shribman - were honored during Senior Day ceremonies.
With Saturday's two victories, Bucknell has now won five of its last six games and is 8-3 in its last 11 contests. The Bison have now won four consecutive Patriot League games.
The Bison and Black Knights will conclude their four-game series and their Patriot League regular-season schedules Sunday with another doubleheader at noon at Depew Field. Both games can be heard on 90.5 WVBU and SportsJuice.com.
.jpg&height=340&type=webp)
