ERIE, Pa. - The Gannon baseball team pounded out 17 runs on 19 hits while splitting a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Western Division doubleheader Saturday afternoon at Gannon University Field. The Golden Knights won the opener 11-6, before falling 7-6 in the nightcap.
Saturday's twinbill was played in temperatures that sat in the 30's with wind chills in the 20's. Gannon only scored during two at-bats in the opener, but it was more than enough to record the victory. The Golden Knights dented the scoreboard first during the third inning.
Bob Roach (Erie, Pa./McDowell) led off with a double down the left field line. After back-to-back batters were hit by a pitch to load the bases,
Zack Ranta (Hamilton, Ontario/Orchard Park Secondary) drove Roach home with a sacrifice fly to center field.
Slippery Rock forged ahead with single runs during the fourth and fifth innings, before Gannon's big explosion during its half of the fifth. The Golden Knights sent 14 batters to the plate while scoring 10 runs on seven hits and three errors.
Taylor Anderson (Niagara Falls, Ontario/A.N. Myer Secondary) had a two-run single during the big inning.
Sean Sutton (Toronto, Ontario/Brebeuf College),
Jared Wiesen (Girard, Ohio/Liberty) and Ranta added RBI base hits. Two runs scored on errors while the remaining two runs came home on a
Mark DeVita (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Hills) sacrifice fly and a double steal.
The Rock tried to rally with a pair of runs during both the sixth and seventh innings, but
Matt Tobin (Erie, Pa./Mercyhurst Prep) finished off his second complete game of the season by getting Jake Nogalo to fly out with the bases loaded.
Roach had the big offensive game for Gannon, going 3-for-3 with two runs. Ranta was 2-for-3 with one run and two RBIs. Sutton also recorded two hits in four at-bats, scoring once and driving home a run. Anderson finished 1-for-2 with two runs and two RBIs.
Tobin evened his record at 2-2 after throwing 124 pitches in seven innings. The left-handed junior surrendered six runs, but only three were earned. He struck out three and walked six.
In the nightcap, nine of the 13 combined runs were scored during the second inning. Slippery Rock appeared to grab control with four runs during the top of the inning. However, Gannon wasted little time responding with five runs while batting around during the bottom of the frame.
DeVita's RBI double brought home the first run, before
Eric Lewandowski's (Souderton, Pa./Lansdale Catholic) two-run double cut the deficit to 4-3. The Golden Knights then moved ahead 5-4 with two-out RBI singles by Wiesen and Anderson.
The contest continued its back-and-forth flow as Slippery Rock tied the game with a single run in the third and moved ahead with a two-spot in the fourth.
Gannon drew within 7-6 on
Aaron Cox's (Dorchester, N.J./Millville) sacrifice fly with the bases loaded in the fourth inning, but Slippery Rock called Preston Falascino out of the bullpen to get out of a bases loaded jam later in the inning with a strikeout. The Golden Knights also left the bases loaded in the fifth with an inning-ending strikeout.
Lewandowski finished game two with a 2-for-4 chart, scoring once and recording two RBIs. Wiesen went 2-for-4 with one run and one RBI.
Gannon moved to 7-19 overall and 3-9 in the PSAC Western Division with Saturday's split. Slippery Rock is now 19-9 overall and 8-4 in divisional play. The two clubs conclude their four-game series Sunday, April 6 at Slippery Rock's Jack Critchfield Park. First pitch is scheduled for 2 p.m.
