University of Pittsburgh Athletics
Pitt
11-14, 0
North Carolina State
16-9, 0
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Runs R | Hits H | Errors E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pitt | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 4 |
| NC State | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 | X | 7 | 12 | 0 |
Baseball Falls At NC State, 7-1
3/28/2015 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
RALEIGH -- Pitt dropped a 7-1 decision to NC State on Saturday, March 28 as the Wolfpack clinched the first-ever series between the two programs.
Once again, NC State (16-9, 5-5 ACC) did its damage in the latter part of the game, scoring all seven of its runs between the fourth through eighth innings. The Wolfpack plated at least one run in each frame, including three in the seventh to break open a two-run game.
Brian Brown (3-1) received the win with five innings of work. He struck out eight and allowed just one run on four hits. Following Brown's departure, Pitt only had two hits in the final four innings as Tommy DeJuneas picked up the save with 2.2 scoreless innings.
Another solid outing from junior Aaron Sandefur (1-3) was spoiled and he was credited with the loss after giving up three runs on eight hits while striking out five in 5.2 innings. It was the fourth straight start Sandefur has allowed three runs or less.
Junior Ron Sherman provided the only scoring for Pitt (11-14, 4-7 ACC) on the day, recording his third home run of the season. Senior Eric Hess finished with two of Pitt's six hits -- both singles.
For the second straight day, neither team was able to amount to anything until the fourth inning after playing three scoreless.
Two hits by the Wolfpack led to the game's first score in the bottom of the fourth. Jake Armstrong led off the frame with a single and made his way to third on a hit-and-run with Andrew Knizner. With runners on the corners, Jake Fincher grounded to short for a fielder's choice, bringing home Armstrong for the 1-0 lead.
And just like the day before, Pitt evened the score in the top of the fifth -- this time on a solo shot from Sherman on the first pitch he saw. Looking for the go-ahead run, Hess beat out an infield single and stood on second with two outs, but was ultimately stranded there.
NC State stole the lead right back with more small ball in the bottom half of the frame. After a leadoff single by Joel McKeithan, Brock Deatherage attempted to move him up with a sacrifice bunt. However, he beat the throw to first, and with no one covering third, McKeithan advanced an extra base to give the Wolfpack two on and no outs. Two batters later, Preston Palmiero hit a shallow fly to center that was still deep enough for McKeithan to tag up and score.
Replacing Brian Brown in the sixth, Jon Olczak quickly retired the first two Panthers he faced on seven pitches before struggling with some control. Pitt's next three batters all drew walks during lengthy at bats, allowing sophomore Manny Pazos to come to the plate with the bases full. After taking three balls and two strikes, Pazos chased the full-count offering and missed as the Wolfpack escaped the jam.
Sandefur worked himself into a similar situation as Olczak in the home half of the sixth, loading the bases following a pair of two-out walks. Unfortunately for the Panthers, Sandefur was unable to get out of the mess. Pitt turned to senior lefty Nick Parnell only to see NC State counter the change by substituting the right-handed hitting Chance Shepard. The pinch hitter got the job done with an infield single deep to the hole at short making it 3-1. The Panthers replaced Parnell with senior Hobie Harris, who needed only three pitches to force a fly out to center for the inning's final out and limit any more damage.
After Pitt stranded the tying and go-ahead runs on the base paths in the seventh, NC State gave itself some breathing room with a three-run stanza to go up 6-1.
It started with a leadoff double from Palmiero, who scored two batters later on an error by freshman Charles LeBlanc with the infield drawn in. A single by Fincher was followed by an RBI double from Bubba Riley off the wall in left field. Following the second out, a wild pitch by Harris allowed the third run of the innings to come home. The last two runs to cross the plate were unearned.
NC State tacked on one final unearned run in the bottom of the eighth as Pitt committed three errors in the inning. Josh McClain reached second on a two-base throwing error from Sherman after the third baseman made a nice stab behind the bag. McClain then stole third and came in to score on an error senior Jordan Frabasilio.
Entering the game, redshirt freshman Frank Maldonado had reached base in all 22 games he had a plate appearance. That streak came to an end when Maldonado failed to get on base for the first time in his career on Saturday.
The middle of NC State's lineup produced the bulk of NC State's offense with Palmeiro, Knizner and Fincher combining for six of the Wolfpack's 12 hits and four of the club's runs batted in.
The teams will complete the three game series on Sunday, March 29 at 1 p.m.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Brown (3-1)
L: Sandefur, Aaron (1-3)
S: DeJuneas (2)
Batting:
HR: Sherman, Ron 1
RBI: Sherman, Ron 1
SH: Hess, Eric 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Sherman, Ron 1
PO: Schnurbusch, Aaron 1
Batting:
2B: Ratledge 1 ; Palmeiro 1 ; Riley 1
RBI: Shepard, C. 1 ; Palmeiro 2 ; Fincher 1 ; Riley 1
SF: Palmeiro 1
Base Running:
RUNS: McLain 1 ; Palmeiro 1 ; Armstrong 1 ; Knizner 1 ; Fincher 2 ; McKeithan 1
SB: McLain 1 ; Fincher 1
