March 12, 2005

Box Score

Fort Myers, Fla. - Chase Rowe recorded four hits and picked up two RBIs Saturday morning to lead The Rock to a come-from-behind 9-7 win over Merrimack (Mass.) in the final game of SRU's annual spring trip.

The Rock had to overcome a 6-1, second-inning deficit to record its ninth win in 10 games this spring.

Brad Wilson and Dave Gonos each had three hits and one RBI for The Rock, while Chris Tolliver had two hits and picked up three RBIs and Matt Kozusko and Tyler Wilson had two hits and one RBI each. J.D. Lowry also had a pair of hits.

Kozusko (solo) and Tolliver (two-run) each smacked a home run. Gonos had a triple and Matt Messer slapped a double.

The Rock had a season-high 19 hits in the game, while Merrimack collected a dozen hits.

Nick Armstrong pitched five and one-third shutout innings in relief of Rock starting pitcher John Katish to pick up his second win of the season.

Armstrong allowed five hits, struck out four and walked three.

Katish yielded seven runs (five earned) on seven hits, walked four and hit one batter in 2 2/3 innings.

Travis Trimbur relieved Armstrong in the ninth inning and struck out one, walked one and hit two batters before giving way to Dan Herisko.

Herisko entered the game with the bases loaded and one out and promptly recorded a pair of strikeouts to slam the door on Merrimack's final-inning threat.

The Rock took a quick 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning on Kozusko's solo home run.

Merrimack responded with four runs in the bottom of the first inning and added two tallies in the second inning to take a 6-1 lead.

Tolliver's two-run home run in the top of the third inning trimmed the margin to three runs, 6-3.

Merrimack scored its final run in the bottom of the third inning to make it 7-3 and set the stage for The Rock's decisive comeback.

The Rock trimmed the deficit to one run, 7-6, with three runs in the top of the fourth inning and tied the score at 7-7 with a run in the fifth.

Tolliver, Brad Wilson and Gonos each stroked two-out RBI singles to key the fourth-inning rally.

Messer led off The Rock fifth inning with a double and scored on an RBI single by Rowe to account for the tying run.

Gonos slapped a one-out triple to right center field and trotted home on an RBI single by Tyler Wilson to account for the eventual winning run.

J.D. Lowry led off The Rock ninth with a single, went to second on an opposite-way ground out by Phil Butch and scored from second on an RBI single by Rowe to score an insurance run.

Merrimack had the potential tying run on second base with one out in the bottom of the ninth thanks to a pair of hit batsmen and a base on balls off Trimbur.

Herisko promptly entered the game and got a pair of swinging strikeouts to leave the bases loaded.

The Rock is scheduled to return to action on Tuesday with a 1 p.m. doubleheader at Jack Critchfield Park against Salem International (W. Va.).