JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – The Slippery Rock University baseball team was swept in a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Western Division doubleheader Friday by Pitt-Johnstown at Point Stadium in Johnstown, Pennsylvania.
The Rock was shutout in the opener, 4-0, before losing game two 5-2. Friday's game was the first for SRU in 17 days.
The losses drop The Rock's record to 14-7 overall and 5-5 in PSAC West competition while the Mountain Cats improve to 15-11 overall and 11-7 in league contests.
Abraham Mow paced The Rock's efforts Friday by going 4-for-7 with two runs scored, two home runs, two RBI and a double. Mow's two-home run day increases his season total to five and his career-mark to 22, the ninth most in program history.
Jon Kozarian,
Connor Hamilton and
Alex Robenolt all had hits in each game as well.
The Rock's offense could never quite get going in the opener as Pitt-Johnstown pitcher Dylan Heid scattered six hits over seven innings while recording 15 strikeouts and not allowing a walk.
Pitt-Johnstown scored the game's first runs in the third inning before adding three insurance runs the following frame to take a 4-0 lead through four innings.
SRU's best scoring opportunity in the opener came in the fifth inning when
Evan Knaus led off the inning with a single followed two batters later by a double from Mow to put runners on second and third with just one out. However, Heid got out of the jam by striking out the next two batters.
Luke Trueman took the loss on the mound for The Rock after allowing four runs on six hits and one walk over five innings. Reliever
Drew Delaney made the first of his two appearances of the day by pitching a scoreless sixth inning.
Game two started on a high note for SRU via a leadoff home run by Mow that gave SRU an early 1-0 lead. However, UPJ responded by scoring five consecutive runs over the following six innings to take a 5-1 lead heading into the seventh.
Mow belted his second home run of the day in the seventh inning, but Pitt-Johnstown reliever Alan Hammerle ended any thoughts of a comeback by recording three final outs to secure the win.
Mow was 2-for-4 with two home runs in game two. Kozarian, Hamilton, Robenolt, Trueman,
Vince Donato ,
Colin Cain and
Anthony Cinicola all added hits as well with Kozarian, Robenolt and Donato all providing doubles.
Christian Seelhorst was the pitcher of record for The Rock in game two. He allowed five runs on four hits and four walks while striking out four batters in four innings of work. Delaney and
JT Wolke both pitched scoreless innings of relief for SRU.
Slippery Rock returns home to complete the four-game conference series with the Mountain Cats with a doubleheader Saturday at Jack Critchfield Park. First pitch of game one is set for 1 p.m.
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