Home Run Lifts West Virginia Past Pitt, 4-1

Tuesday, March 31

Pittsburgh, Pa.

6:00 PM

Pitt

11-16

West Virginia

16-10

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	Runs R	Hits H	Errors E
West Virginia	0	0	0	3	0	1	0	0	0	4	7	0
Pitt	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	1	7	0

Home Run Lifts West Virginia Past Pitt, 4-1

3/31/2015 12:00:00 AM | Baseball

Box Score

March 31, 2015

Box Score | Season Stats | Photo Gallery

Follow @PITTBASEBALL

PITTSBURGH - A three-run homer by Ray Guerrini broke open the scoring and proved to be the difference in West Virginia's 4-1 victory over Pitt on Tuesday, March 31 at Charles L. Cost Field.

Guerrini finished the game for with only one hit, but drove in all four runs and had a timely pickoff down to third when Pitt had the bases loaded and was threatening for runs.

With the result, the Panthers (11-16) have now fallen in four straight games -- their longest such streak of the season. In contrast, the Mountaineers (16-10) collected a season-best seventh consecutive victory.

Reliever Jeff Hardy (1-0) earned the winning decision on the strength of allowing one run on three hits over 5.0 innings, striking out six. Hardy came on following a two-inning outing from starter Shane Ennis and a scoreless inning from Jordan Sergent.

Pitt struggled to score throughout the game despite a number of opportunities, stranding a total of 12 runners on the day to West Virginia's two. Six of those runners were left in scoring position for the Panthers and in five of the innings Pitt left at least two runners on base. Overall, Pitt was 3-for-16 (.188) with runners on base and 1-for-11 (.091) with runners in scoring position.

Sophomore starter Sam Mersing (2-1) turned in a solid effort, taking a no-hitter into the fourth inning for the second outing in a row and third time in four starts this year. Over 5.0-plus innings, Mersing allowed four runs on six hits while striking out four.

Offensively, the Panthers received multi-hit games from senior Boo Vazquez and junior Ron Sherman. It was both their second multi-hit games of the season. Sherman scored the lone run.

In the early stages of the game, Pitt couldn't cash in on multiple chances, leaving a total of five runners on base in the first three innings.

In the first, the Panthers got back-to-back singles from freshman Charles LeBlanc and Vazquez, but left runners on the corners. Two innings later, Pitt loaded the bases with a leadoff single from Sherman and a pair of two-out walks. However, Sergent induced a ground out to third to end the threat.

Meanwhile, Mersing was mowing down the Mountaineers hitters, issuing just two walks and getting a double play to negate one of them. He faced only 10 batters in the first three innings -- one over the minimum.

After allowing consecutive singles to start the fourth, including a hit-and-run by Kyle Davis, Mersing picked up two critical strikeouts leaving the Mountaineers with one out and two runners in scoring position. Two strikes away from getting out of the inning unharmed, Guerrini lifted an 0-1 offering over the towering wall in left to put three runs on the scoreboard.

The Panthers put got one run back in the bottom of the fifth, but once again left more potential runs on base when redshirt sophomore Jacob Wright was picked off at third for the final out with the bases full.

Sherman led off the frame with his second hit of the game and proceeded to take second on a wild pitch. Wright followed with a single to place Panthers on the corners and Sherman came home on Leblanc's RBI groundout. With two outs, Hardy hit the next two batters, giving Pitt the bases loaded for the second time in the game. With senior Jordan Frabasilio up to bat, Guerrini received a pitch from Hardy and snapped a throw behind Wright to third base and the tag was applied, allowing West Virginia to escape the jam.

In the next half inning, WVU extended its lead to 4-1, but ran into an inning-ending double play on a suicide squeeze trying to score another. It was the second of three double plays for the Panthers on the day, a season-high.

Mersing was knocked out of the game after surrendering back-to-back hits to begin the sixth. Each of the next two batters laid down sacrifice bunts, the second of which was a suicide squeeze from Guerrini. The run from third crossed the plate as Guerrini was thrown out at first and Brad Johnson attempted to score all the way from second, but Frabasilio made the throw back home in time to gun Johnson out for the double play.

Pitt brought the tying run up in both the sixth and eighth innings, but couldn't add any more runs to its total. The Panthers had runners on the corners following a walk to Sherman in the sixth, but Hardy picked up a strikeout to end the frame. In the eighth, Pitt had two on and only one out after single from senior Eric Hess, but two more strikeouts from Hardy kept the WVU lead intact.

Relievers, senior Nick Parnell and Isaac Mattson both give Pitt solid innings, each pitching two scoreless frames. Parnell, who allowed one hit, was the recipient of two double plays. Mattson retied all six batters he faced.

The Panthers continue their homestand this weekend with three games against West Virginia starting on Friday, April 3.