Diamond 'Dogs Complete Sweep With Pair Of Saturday Wins Over UNC Asheville
April 19, 2009 | Baseball
BOILING SPRINGS – Gardner-Webb kept its bats hot on
Saturday, rapping out a combined 27 hits and scoring 21 runs in two
games to complete its series sweep of UNC Asheville, 11-2 and
10-5.
The two teams played at doubleheader Saturday in a race against
impending bad weather expected Sunday in the area.
Gardner-Webb (20-15, 9-6 Big South) jumped out to an early lead in
the opener Saturday, and rode a magnificent pitching performance by
sophomore lefty Brett Stackhouse to an 11-2 victory.
Ty Boyles' RBI double in the first gave GWU a 2-0 lead, and the
‘Dogs added single runs in the second and third – one on
a solo home run by Justin Loyd – to take control of the game.
Brock Miller led off the fifth with a solo blast to left center,
Daniel Cooke followed with a sharp single and scored easily on Kurt
Fulginiti's long triple to right. A sacrifice fly by Boyles pushed
Gardner-Webb's lead to 7-0 before UNC Asheville could work out of
the jam.
Cooke sparked a three-run burst in the sixth with a two-run single
that plated Bubbie Spake and Miller, giving Gardner-Webb a
commanding 10-0 advantage.
Catlin Carter singled home Danny Baatz in the eighth for
Asheville's first run, and the first run off of Stackhouse –
who held the visiting set of Bulldogs hitless through 3.1 innings.
Stackhouse (4-3) got out of the eighth without allowing another
hit, and finished his day.
The Bridgeville, Pa., southpaw worked 8.0 complete, scattered five
hits (four singles) and fanned six batters for his second-straight
league win.
UNC Asheville added its final run in the ninth against the GWU
bullpen.
Gardner-Webb finished with 15 hits in the game, with Cooke
(3-for-4, 2 RBI), Loyd (2-for-4, HR, RBI), Fulginiti (2-for-4,
RBI), Jon Ahearn (2-for-3, 3B, 2 runs) and Tyler Johnson (2-for-2,
2 RBI) leading the charge.
Taylor Wohlwend (2-9) took the loss for Asheville, allowing 11 hits
and nine runs in 5.0 innings of work. Seven different batters had
one hit apiece for the visitors.
GAME TWO: GWU 10, UNC Asheville 5
Daniel Cooke hammered a long, two-run home run in the bottom of the
first and belted an RBI double in the third to break a 2-2 tie and
give Gardner-Webb the lead for good in a 10-5 win in Saturday's
nightcap.
UNC Asheville got a solo home run from Mike Vaughn in the top of
the second to trim the GWU lead to 2-1, and tied the game on a wild
pitch that scored Catlin Carter in the top of the second –
after Carter led off the frame with a single.
Brock Miller led off Gardner-Webb's half of the third with a single
up the middle, moved to second on a balk call, and scored easily on
Cooke's sharp double into the gap in right center. Justin Loyd
followed with a single that moved Cooke to third, and Kurt
Fulginiti lofted a ball to deep right center that drove in Cooke on
a sacrifice fly for a 4-2 edge.
Austin Graham belted a solo home run in the fourth with one out to
trim the lead to 4-3, a long shot to dead center – but
reliever Ryan Maxa got out of the jam without giving up the
lead.
GWU added some insurance in the fourth, getting RBI singles from
Loyd and Fulginiti for a 6-3 edge. Asheville didn't go away without
making some noise, however, as Justin Schumer poked a two-out
single to left and Vaughn hammered his second long ball of the day,
a two-run shot to left center, to cut Gardner-Webb's lead to just
one run, 6-5. Maxa again limited the damage, however, and got a pop
up on the next play to end the threat.
Asheville put two men on board in the sixth, after a single by
Baatz and a walk by Reed Krieser, but closer Jonathon Ban came on
to leave both men on board and preserve the lead. Gardner-Webb
added an unearned run in the sixth, and pulled away for good in the
seventh.
Ty Boyles led off the seventh inning with a triple to right center,
and Jon Ahearn put the ‘Dogs up 8-5 with an RBI knock to
center field. O.J. McFarland launched a 420-foot home run to dead
center two batters later, and his two-run shot effectively put the
game out of reach.
Ban allowed only one base runner (walk) in the eighth and ninth to
earn his second save in as many weeks after moving into the closer
role. Maxa (4-0) picked up a relief win, scattering five hits and
three runs in 2.2 innings of work.
Miller (3-for-5, SB, 3 runs), Cooke (2-for-4, 2B, HR, 3 RBI, SB)
and Loyd (2-for-5, RBI) paced Gardner-Webb's 12-hit attack
offensively.
Schumer (1-6) took the loss, allowing six runs on seven hits in 3.2
innings of work (two strikeouts). Vaughn paced Asheville's nine-hit
offense, going 2-for-2 with a pair of home runs and three RBI.
Baatz also had a pair of hits (2-for-4, 2B).
Gardner-Webb will hit the road on Tuesday for a mid-week tilt at
Furman, taking on the Paladins at 7 pm ET in Greenville (April 21).
The Diamond ‘Dogs scored 43 runs in four games this past week
(3-1 record).
| Box Score Game 2 |
| Box Score |
