Feb. 23, 2007
Box Score
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - The Pitt baseball team lost a close, one-run contest to No. 1 Vanderbilt Friday evening in its opening game of the Music City Classic at Hawkins Field in Nashville, Tenn. The Panthers scored three early runs, but the Commodores tallied four unanswered runs of their own for the win.
Both teams went scoreless in the first, and it was Pitt (0-4) who put the first run of the day on the board in the top of the second. Designated hitter Brian Muldowney (West Chester, Pa./West Chester East) ripped a leadoff double down the left-field line for his first hit of the season. Two batters later, senior second baseman Dan Williams (Berwyn, Pa./Episcopal Academy) singled to center, scoring Muldowney and giving the Panthers a 1-0 advantage. Vanderbilt (8-0) starter David Price quieted the Pitt bats by striking out the next two and getting out of the inning.
After holding off the Commodore offense, Pitt added to its lead in the top of the third with some two-out lightning. With the bases empty, senior Peter Parise (Bronx, NY/Cardinal Spellman) ripped his fifth single of the season deep to right-center field. First basemen Seth Button (Elk Lake, Pa./Gloucester College) followed suit notching his fifth hit of the season with a single down the third base line.
With two on and two out, Price hit Muldowney with a pitch to load the bases. Catcher Nick Mullins (Brick, NJ/Brookdale Community College) took advantage of the situation and launched a single to center, scoring both Parise and Button and extending Pitt's lead to 3-2. Mullins was the only Panther to tally two or more hits in the contest, going 2-4 with two RBIs.
Pitt starter Paul Nardozzi (Victor, NY/Victor) kept the Commodores at bay through the second, striking out two and giving up just two hits. Vanderbilt broke free in the bottom of the third when junior outfielder David Macias drew a leadoff walk and advanced to second on teammate Pedro Alvarez's single to right. Both runners crossed the plate when catcher Shea Robin ripped a deep single to left-center field, to cut the Panthers' lead to 3-2.
Vanderbilt added two final runs in the bottom of the fourth when outfielder Jonathan White ripped a leadoff double and scored on a single from Commodores' designated hitter Kurt Lipton, tying the score at 3-3. The eventual game-winning run was produced when junior Brad French scored on a fielder's choice.
Nardozzi gave way to right-handed reliever Kyle Landis (Hazelton, Pa./Hazelton) in the fifth inning. Landis finished the game for the Panthers, throwing 3.1 scoreless innings and giving up just three hits, while striking out two. Nardozzi (0-2) tallied 4.2 innings pitched with four strikeouts, while giving up nine hits and four runs for the loss, while Price (2-0) picked up the win for Vanderbilt.
The Panthers will be back in action Saturday for a 2 p.m. match-up with Belmont. Last season, Pitt tallied a convincing 14-7 win over the Bruins. The Panthers will then conclude play in the Music City Classic with a 2 p.m. game against Lipscomb, who they dropped a 4-0 decision to last season.
NOTES: Junior catcher Nick Mullins notched his first two RBIs as a Panther with his two-run single in today's game. Mullins joins the Panthers this season as a transfer from Brookdale Community College. Seth Button has tallied hits in each of Pitt's first four games of the 2007 season. Last season, Button had a career-best, five-game hitting streak from May 14 - May 20, 2006.
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