University of Massachusets Athletics
University of Massachusetts
3-3
Bucknell
3-9
Ninth Inning Comeback Lifts Minutemen Past Bucknell, 10-9
March 12, 2018 | Baseball
UMass rallied from three runs down in the eighth inning
Cooper Mrowka went 3-for-3 with three RBI, two walks and a run scored while leadoff hitter Eddy Hart contributed a 2-for-4 day at the plate plus an RBI, two walks and three runs. Hart and Ryan Lever have now hit safely in five straight games, while Hart and Nolan Kessinger have reached base in all six games this season.
Four Minutemen in Hart, Mrowka, Thomas Pipolo and Justen Voghel each laced doubles in the victory.
Massachusetts was first to get on the board, plating one in the top of the first inning when a sacrifice fly by Norton brought Hart in. Bucknell would put up four in the bottom of the frame and lead from that point until the top of the ninth inning.
The sides proceeded to trade two runs apiece in both the fourth and seventh innings as well as a single tally in the fifth. In the fourth Mrowka sent a sacrifice fly to center field and Logan Greene drew a four-pitch walk with the bases loaded, scoring Hart and Lever, respectively. In the fifth Lever laced a base hit that plated Luke Oliphant, moving the score at that time to 6-4 in favor of Bucknell.
Mrowka went on to drop a single into left field in the seventh inning that scored Lever and Hart. Hart would notch an RBI in the eighth on a groundout, bringing in Brett Evangelista who had pinch ran for Justen Voghel after Voghel doubled to lead off the inning.
Massachusetts sent seven men to bat in the top of the ninth and reached its first three batters, loading the bases with nobody out and trailing 9-7. Kessinger proceeded to score on a wild pitch before Evangelista sent a sac fly to right. Smith then stepped to the dish and slapped a 1-0 offering up the middle for what turned to be the game-winning RBI via Norton. Casey Aubin then retired the Bison in order including the last two via strikeout, preserving the victory.
Aubin (1-0) was the winner on the rubber after tossing the game's final three innings and failing to surrender a single hit. He struck out three and allowed no walks. Brenden Tuttle (0-2) was hooked with the loss in relief as a result of four runs on two hits, two walks, a wild pitch and a hit batsman.
The Minutemen worked a combined 14 walks on the day but also left 17 men on base.
Monday's victory evens UMass' record at 3-3 early on in the season while the Bison drop to 3-9.
UMass and Bucknell play the middle game of their three-game series in the same ballpark on Tues., March 13 at 3 p.m.
For the latest news and updates around UMass baseball, follow the team on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram @UMassBaseball.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Aubin, Casey (1-0)
L: Tuttle, Brenden (0-2)
Batting:
2B: Hart, Eddy 1 ; Mrowka, Cooper 1 ; Voghel, Justen 1 ; Pipolo, Thomas 1
RBI: Hart, Eddy 1 ; Lever, Ryan 1 ; Mrowka, Cooper 3 ; Norton, Alec 1 ; Greene, Logan 1 ; Evangelista, Brett 1 ; Smith, Connor 1
SH: Kessinger, Nolan 1 ; DiOrio, Frank 1
SF: Mrowka, Cooper 1 ; Norton, Alec 1 ; Evangelista, Brett 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Hart, Eddy 3 ; Lever, Ryan 2 ; Kessinger, Nolan 1 ; Mrowka, Cooper 1 ; Norton, Alec 1 ; Evangelista, Brett 1 ; Oliphant, Luke 1
HBP: Kessinger, Nolan 2 ; Norton, Alec 3 ; Voghel, Justen 1
Batting:
2B: Johnson, Luke 1 ; Rawlings, Keifer 2 ; Madigan, Evan 1
3B: Bell, JohnPaul 1
RBI: Johnson, Luke 2 ; Bell, JohnPaul 1 ; Moore, Miles 1 ; Wincig, Tyler 1 ; Rawlings, Keifer 1 ; Madigan, Evan 1
SF: Moore, Miles 1 ; Wincig, Tyler 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Toso, Dominic 1 ; Hartman, Luke 1 ; Johnson, Luke 2 ; Bell, JohnPaul 1 ; Moore, Miles 1 ; Wincig, Tyler 1 ; Rawlings, Keifer 1 ; Madigan, Evan 1
HBP: Johnson, Luke 1 ; Moore, Miles 1
