April 10, 2007

Game 1 Box Score
Game 2 Box Score

Slippery Rock, Pa. - Matt Adams collected five hits and six RBIs on Tuesday, but The Rock had a settle for a split in its Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference-Western Division doubleheader vs. visiting Lock Haven at Jack Critchfield Park.

Adams had a pair of doubles and picked up four RBIs in The Rock's 16-4 win in the first game and was 3-for-4 with two RBIs in Game 2, which Lock Haven won by a 7-3 score.

The second-game loss dropped SRU (19-9 overall, 5-3 PSAC-W) into third place in the PSAC-West standings as both California and Shippensburg recorded doubleheader sweeps on Tuesday.

The division standings show California (18-9, 6-2) and Shippensburg (16-12, 6-2) tied for first place, one game ahead of SRU and two games in front of Indiana (13-21, 4-4). Lock Haven is now 8-18, 2-6, while Clarion is in the division cellar at 7-17, 1-7.

The division co-leaders meet head-on, as do The Rock and Indiana, in the next set of four-game season series.

SRU hosts Indiana in a 1 p.m. twinbill Friday at Jack Critchfield Park, then visits Owen Dougherty Field in Indiana for a 1 p.m. twinbill Sunday.

Sunday's games will open a seven-game road trip for the Green White, who visit Shepherd (W. Va.) for a non-conference twinbill on Sunday.

The Rock then travel to Division I Duquesne for a nine-inning single game next Tuesday, go to Wheeling Jesuit for a non-conference twinbill on April 19 and visit Clarion for a PSAC-West doubleheader on April 20 before hosting Clarion in a 3:30 p.m. twinbill on April 21.

Tuesday's first game

The Rock jumped out to a 3-0 lead after two innings, then fell behind by a 4-3 score before scoring 13 unanswered runs to turn Tuesday's first game into a rout.

Scott Bender singled home SRU's first run in the bottom of the first inning before Adams doubled home two runs in the second frame.

Billy Herman's no-out, two-run double down the left field line in the fourth inning proved to be the game-winning hit. Adams immediately followed that hit with his second two-run double of the game, Travis Trimbur added The Rock's third two-run, two-bagger of the inning, Billy Messer singled home a run and Bender brought a run home with a ground ball to key an eight-run frame that blew the game wide open.

Up by a 13-4 margin, The Rock padded its lead with five runs in the fifth. Key hits in the uprising were a leadoff double by Herman, an RBI single by M.J. Parsons, a two-run triple by Bender, an RBI single by Trimbur and an RBI single by Herman in his second at-bat of the inning.

Herman, Messer and Phil Butch each finished the game with three hits, while Adams and Trimbur had two hits apiece. Adams and Bender each picked up four RBIs, while Herman and Trimbur each collected three RBIs.

Starting and winning pitcher Mark Tanner was the beneficiary of a 17-hit Rock offensive attack. He allowed four earned runs on seven hits, struck out one and walked three in four innings of work but was credited with his fourth win in as many decisions this spring.

Josh Rape struck out one in two scoreless/hitless innings in relief of Tanner before Mike DeCola struck out one in a quiet final frame.

Game 2

The Rock managed only six hits in the second gmae, three off the bat of Adams and two in the bottom of the seventh during an ill-fated comeback effort.

Lock Haven scored four unearned runs in the top of the third inning, helped along by three Rock errors, and never looked back.

The Rock got one of the runs back in its half of the third, thanks to a leadoff double by Butch and an RBI single by Adams.

The hosts did not score again, though, until they found themselves down by a 7-1 count heading into their final at-bat of the game.

A two-out walk to Butch, an RBI double by Herman and an RBI single by Adams plated two runs in the bottom of the seventh to trim the final margin to four runs.

Rock starting pitcher Chris Squeglia was tagged with the loss, his fourth in five decisions this spring, after he allowed five runs -- only one of which was earned -- on five hits, struck out three and walked two in the first four frames.

Craig Misiewicz allowed two earned runs on three hits and struck out one in two innings of work before Vince Lloyd retired the Bald Eagles in order in the top of the seventh.

Notes: The Rock moved up three spots to a tie for 27th in the latest American Baseball Coaches Association/Collegiate Baseball Newspaper Division II national poll ... SRU was ranked 24th in last week's National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association national poll. That poll will be updated Wednesday morning.