Big Eighth Inning Leads Pitt Past USCU, 10-4

Saturday, February 21

Spartanburg, S.C.

1:00 PM

Pitt

2-3

USC Upstate

1-4

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	Runs R	Hits H	Errors E
Pitt	1	1	0	0	1	1	0	4	2	10	13	0
USC Upstate	1	0	0	1	0	2	0	0	0	4	10	1

Big Eighth Inning Leads Pitt Past USCU, 10-4

2/21/2015 12:00:00 AM | Baseball

Box Score

Feb. 21, 2015

Final Stats

SPARTANBURG, S.C. – For the second straight day, the University of Pittsburgh baseball team (2-3, 0-0 ACC) had a contest decided in the eighth inning. This time, playing on the road against USC Upstate (1-4, 0-0 A-Sun) at Cleveland S. Harvey Baseball Park, it was the Panthers lighting up the scoreboard.

“We battled hard at the plate and beat a very solid team,” said head coach Joe Jordano. “We played clean defensively, we pitched really well, and we got some clutch hits. We played our game today, and that was the difference in the ballgame.”

The team tallied seven extra-base hits from seven different men in the lineup.

Aaron Sandefur (0-0, 4.50) made his first start for the Panthers, allowing four earned runs over 6.0 innings. He struck out seven and issued no walks to push his strikeout-to-walk ratio to 10:0 on the year.

Matt Pidich (1-0, 1.35) relieved him in the seventh and received the win after allowing just one hit over three scoreless innings, striking out five. His K/9 rate improved to 14.85 so far this year after accumulating 11 strikeouts in just 6.2 innings of work.

Pitt got on the board in the top of the first inning when Nick Yarnall singled and scored on a double stroked into right field by Boo Vazquez.

The two teams traded scores back and forth over the first two innings. Upstate’s Erik Samples smacked a solo home run in the bottom of the frame, and the Panthers responded in the top of the second with Aaron Schnurbusch manufacturing a run with his legs. The junior transfer singled before proceeding to steal second and third to put himself in position for a perfect safety squeeze bunt from Eric Hess.

The Panthers later broke a 2-2 tie in the fifth when Nick Yarnall added his second hit of the day with a triple down the right field line - his first career three-bagger. Jordan Frabasilio brought him in with a sacrifice fly for his fourth RBI this season – tied for the team lead.

Schnurbusch doubled in the sixth and again wreaked havoc on the basepaths. He induced an errant pickoff attempt at second, and then scored from third on a wild pitch to make it 4-2, Pitt.

However, Upstate would tie the game at four in the bottom of the same frame, setting up a pivotal eighth inning for the second straight day.

Following a pickoff and a strikeout, Caleb Parry doubled to put Pitt in business with two outs. With first base open, the Spartans elected not to face the red-hot Schnurbusch, who finished 4-for-4 with four runs scored. Manny Pazos then walked to load the bases, and Eric Hess delivered a clutch two-out, two-run double for his third RBI of the day to put the Panthers in front, 6-4. The onslaught continued with a two-run single from Charles LeBlanc before Upstate could put out the fire.

Pazos added insurance in the top of the ninth with a two-run double of his own.

“[Today was] one of the more complete games we’ve played this year, and we’ve got to build on that going into tomorrow,” said Jordano.

The Panthers conclude the weekend tomorrow when they face ETSU back at Harley Park. First pitch is scheduled for noon.