Bucknell University
4-9, 0
Navy
7-9, 0
Baseball Takes Series Opener from Navy, 12-2
3/18/2022 5:27:00 PM | Baseball
Chris Cannizzaro had a three-hit day, and Jacob Corson, Tyler Dunn, Kendall Pierson, and Logan Kellerman all enjoyed two-hit games for the Bison (4-9, 1-0), who took the first of a four-game weekend set with the Midshipmen (7-9, 0-1).
Bucknell's 18 hits marked a season-high, but Greer was one of the stories of the day. The junior went at least seven innings with one run or fewer allowed for the third time in five starts this season. Greer (2-0), who also owns a win over Duke this season, went eight scoreless in this one, yielding six hits with only one walk while striking out four.
After Grant Voytovich's two-run double just four pitches into the game keyed a three-run bottom of the first, Greer worked out of a second-and-third, one-out jam in the second. He stranded two more runners in scoring position in the fourth thanks to an inning-ending sliding catch in center field by Kyle Lyons, and then Greer was in complete control the rest of the way.
He retired 12 straight Navy hitters in one stretch. Corson made a sensational diving stop near the bag at third and threw out Kyle Rausch to start the fifth inning, with Tyler Dunn doing well to hold the bag at first for the out. Eduardo Diaz ended the string with a double off the left-field wall with one out in the eighth, but Greer put a bow on his afternoon with a ground out and fly out.
Jacob Corson and Tyler Dunn flashed the leather at both corners of the diamond in today's win over Navy!
— Bucknell Baseball ⚾️ (@Bucknell_BB) March 18, 2022
cc: @PatriotLeagueTV #rayBucknell | #PLTop3 pic.twitter.com/0kwROjhs7e
By that point, Bucknell had broken the game open thanks to four runs in the sixth and five more in the seventh. Navy starter Nate Mitchell (0-2), who came in with a 2.92 ERA in three previous outings, had settled in after the three-run first, but the Bison chased him with five straight hits in the sixth.
Bucknell's No. 8 and 9 hitters provided the big blows in the frame. Kellerman delivered an RBI single, then Lyons doubled into the left-center gap to plate another run. Sherwin's RBI single ended Mitchell's day, and then Lyons made a heads-up play to tag up and score from third base on Cannizzaro's foul pop near the first-base bag.
The first five Bison reached base to start the seventh, and Pierson, Kellerman, Sherwin, Cannizzaro, and Corson all delivered RBI singles with the bases loaded in the inning.
Navy broke up the shutout with two runs in the ninth. Pinch-hitter Kiel Brenczewski doubled off the wall in left, and the Mids followed with runs on a wild pitch and a ground out.
The series continues with a doubleheader on Saturday, with the opener slated for a 12 p.m. start. Both games will be streamed on ESPN+.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Greer, Will (2-0)
L: Mitchell, Nate (0-2)
Batting:
2B: Diaz, Eduardo 1 ; Brenczewski, Kiel 1
RBI: Simourian, Joe 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Stevens, Zach 1 ; Brenczewski, Kiel 1
SB: Policelli, Christian 1
HBP: Stevens, Zach 1
Batting:
2B: Voytovich, Grant 1 ; Lyons, Kyle 1
RBI: Sherwin, Anthony 2 ; Cannizzaro, Chris 2 ; Voytovich, Grant 2 ; Corson, Jacob 1 ; Lowery, Brendan 1 ; Pierson, Kendall 1 ; Kellerman, Logan 2 ; Lyons, Kyle 1
SF: Cannizzaro, Chris 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Sherwin, Anthony 1 ; Cannizzaro, Chris 1 ; Voytovich, Grant 1 ; Corson, Jacob 1 ; Dunn, Tyler 1 ; Lowery, Brendan 2 ; Pierson, Kendall 2 ; Kellerman, Logan 2 ; Lyons, Kyle 1
HBP: Kellerman, Logan 1
PO: Voytovich, Grant 1
