University of Pittsburgh Athletics
Pitt
Seton Hall
Panthers and Pirates Split Doubleheader
5/8/2010 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
May 8, 2010
SOUTH ORANGE, N.J. — The University of Pittsburgh baseball team split its doubleheader with Seton Hall University here today at Owen T. Carroll Field, winning game one 14-2 before dropping game two, 9-7. The Panthers clinched the series and a spot in the Big East Conference Tournament with its game one win, marking the second straight season the Panthers will participate in the year-end tournament.
Matt Iannazzo (9-1) picked up his ninth win of the season after going seven strong innings in game one, yielding eight hits and two runs while walking two and striking out four Pirate batters. Nate Hood (4-1) was charged with his first loss of the season after giving up nine runs on 10 hits in two and third innings in game two.
Kevan Smith and Travis Whitmore led the Panthers at the plate, with each player tallying five hits on the day. Smith drove in four and had the only home run of the day while Whitmore added three RBI of his own.
In game one, the Panthers exploded with a five-run first inning, highlighted by Smith’s two-out, two-run homer to left. David Chester singled in Zach Duggan for the first run of the game before Smith quickly made it 3-0 in favor of the Panthers. Whitmore singled and stole second while Seton Hall starting pitcher Frank Morris walked Danny Lopez and Cory Brownsten to load the bags. Phillip Konieczny’s RBI fielder’s choice made it 4-0 before Morris walked in Duggan to make it 5-0.
Pitt’s offense put the game away two innings later, scoring four in the fourth to make it 9-0. The Panthers quickly loaded the bases after John Schultz singled and Joe Leonard and Chester each drew walks forcing SHU turned to their pen again, with Mike Genovese taking over for Rick Mangione. Smith’s sacrifice fly scored Schultz while Whitmore’s bases-clearing triple one batter later scored two more, making it 8-0. Brownsten added an RBI single to round out the scoring at 9-0 in the top half of the fourth for Pitt.
SHU’s Will Walsh singled to center, driving in the Pirates’ first run of the day in the bottom of the fourth while Bobby Abreu tripled and scored on an error by Whitmore in the fifth to cut the Pitt lead to 9-2.
Lopez’s RBI sac-fly in the sixth extended the Panther lead to eight at 10-2. Pitt then added four more in the top half of the ninth for good measure, jumping out to a 14-2 lead. Schultz’s two-RBI double to left was followed by an RBI base hit from Ronald Sucre, putting Pitt ahead 13-2. An Ed Ras fielding error two batters later allowed Schultz to score the final run of the game.
After a scoreless first inning, Pitt claimed a 3-0 lead midway through the second. Lopez’s RBI single to right drove in Whitmore, who had tripled to lead off the inning. Lopez then stole second and scored on a Sucre infield single, making it 2-0 in favor of the Panthers. Duggan capped off the scoring for Pitt with a single to center, scoring Sucre from second base.
Seton Hall answered in the bottom half of the second, scoring five runs on five hits to take their first lead since the first inning of Friday’s game. Chris Spagnuolo drove in two with a base hit to left to cut the lead to 3-2. Bobby Abreu walked and advanced to third after back-to-back singles before scoring on a wild pitch by Hood to knot the game at 3-3. Frank Esposito’s two-RBI single to left capped the SHU second.
The Pirates’ offense remained hot in the third, tacking on another four runs to extend their lead to 9-3. RBI base hits by Chase Gray, Spagnuolo and Michael Rogers left the Panthers trailing by six after three complete innings of play.
Smith led off the Panther sixth with a single through the left side and scored on Brownsten’s RBI base knock to center, cutting the deficit to five at 9-4.
Pitt mounted a comeback in the eighth, cutting the lead to two at 9-7. Three straight singles by Schultz, Smith and Chester loaded the bases and paved way for Whitmore’s RBI single through the right side, scoring Schultz. Brownsten’s sacrifice fly scored Smith before Lopez reached on a fielder’s choice which scored Manny Pahoulis.
Duggan’s leadoff walk in the ninth was as close as the Panthers would get in the top of the ninth, as Seton Hall was able hold off and avoid being swept by Pitt for a second straight season.
The Panthers will be back in action Tuesday, May 11 at 6 p.m. as they take on Ohio University at Trees Field.
