March 17, 2007

Box Score

Fort Myers, Fla. - Dan Hudeck smacked a bases-loaded triple Saturday morning but it was too little too late as the 27th-ranked Rock dropped a 10-4 decision to No. 21 Ashland in the finale of SRU's annual spring trip to the Sunshine State.

Saturday's loss gives SRU an 11-4 record heading into its scheduled home opener Tuesday (1 p.m.) vs. Mansfield at Jack Critchfield Park.

Inclement weather in western Pennsylvania casts a doubt on the likelihood that Tuesday's games will be played as scheduled. Watch this web site for updates on The Rock schedule.

Matt Adams and Rich Michalek had two hits each to join Hudeck as The Rock's hitting stars in Saturday's game. One of Michalek's hits was a double, the only other extra-base hit by The Rock aside from Hudeck's shot into the right-center field gap.

SRU collected seven hits in the game, but four Rock pitchers allowed 11 hits by Ashland.

Chris Squeglia was SRU's starting and losing pitcher. He allowed two earned runs on seven hits, struck out six and walked two in six innings.

Sean Holliday allowed three runs (two earned) on only one hit, struck out one and walked two in 1 1/3 innings of work; Craig Misiewicz allowed two unearned runs and walked two in two-thirds of an inning and Josh Smith yielded three runs on three hits, struck out two and walked one in the final inning.

Ashland scored one run in each of the first, third and seventh innings before the Eagles erupted for four runs in the top of the eighth inning. The Rock was its own worst enemy that inning as a throwing error with bases loaded and two outs pushed across three runs.

Down by a 7-0 score, The Rock rallied to score four times in the bottom of the eighth. Hudeck's three-run triple and an RBI single by M.J. Parsons were the key hits.

Ashland came right back with three runs of its own in the top of the ninth to set the final margin.

Saturday's loss gave SRU a 7-4 record on its spring trip and a 1-2 record against teams ranked in the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper Division II national poll.

SRU split a pair of games vs. No. 22 West Chester prior to dropping Saturday's game to the No. 21 Eagles.