Diamond 'Dogs Fall Short, 11-10, Against Radford Friday
May 14, 2010 | Baseball
SPARTANBURG, S.C. - Gardner-Webb led 8-2 after four innings Friday, but saw that lead evaporate as Radford rallied with nine unanswered runs and then held on for a 11-10 win.
Radford (27-21, 14-8 Big South) got an RBI single from Alex Guerra with two outs in the top of the eighth to go in front and the Highlanders' bullpen kept Gardner-Webb at bay until a ninth inning rally by the 'Dogs that nearly regained the lead.
The Highlanders pushed their lead to 11-8 in the top of the ninth on Andrew Cook's two-run home run with two outs, but Gardner-Webb would make a run at the lead in the bottom half.
Kurt Fulginiti broke a streak of 13 consecutive batters retired with a leadoff double in the ninth, and Jake Watts followed with an infield single to put runners at the corners with no outs. Aaron Miller chopped an RBI single to shortstop to trim the lead to 11-9, bringing the winning run to the plate in Josh Drewery.
Radford reliever Abram Williams put a damper on the rally by rolling a double play, but Watts would score on a two-out single by Ty Boyles to trim the lead to 11-10. The Highlanders turned to closer Jason Patten after Boyles' single, and Patten got O.J. McFarland to pop up to center field, ending the game.
Early on, the 'Dogs appeared to have control in a key game, with six runs crossing in the bottom of the second inning to give GWU a 7-1 edge. Daniel Merck's three-run home run was the big blow, as Gardner-Webb sent 10 men to the plate. That run chased Radford ace Aerik Taylor from the game after just 1.1 innings of work.
Radford cut the lead to 7-2 with a run in the top of the fourth, but Aaron Miller scored on a wild pitch in the bottom of that same inning for an 8-2 Gardner-Webb lead.
Things would go badly for the Runnin' Bulldogs from there, as starter Brett Stackhouse was chased after allowing Radford to trim that lead to 8-6 with a four-run burst in the fifth. Raphael Turner's three-run home run was the big hit in the frame for Radford.
The Highlanders turned to lefty Paul DeVito (2-3), who earned the win with 5.0 strong innings of relief work. DeVito allowed just one run and one hit in the appearance. Patten earned his fourth save of the season as well for Radford.
Jeff Howell (2-4) took the loss in relief, allowing five runs on eight hits in 4.0 innings out of the bullpen.
Gardner-Webb had 16 hits in the game, but stranded seven runners. Miller went 4-for-5 with a pair of RBI to lead to way. Fulginiti (3-for-5, three runs) and Boyles (3-for-4, 3 RBI) also had big days at the plate.
Radford's 15-hit effort was led by Matt Mack (3-for-5) and Brett Mollenhauer (3-for-5, 2 2B).
The two teams will play a doubleheader on Saturday, beginning at 1:00 pm ET in Forest City. Gardner-Webb's seniors will be honored between games.
| Box Score (PDF) |
