Georgia Tech Capitalizes on Two Eagle Defensive Errors
3/16/2011 1:59:00 AM | Baseball
ATLANTA - Georgia Tech (13-4) capitalized on two Georgia Southern (11-6) errors to score a pair of unearned runs and take the first of two games in Atlanta between the two teams 4-3. The Yellow Jackets erased an early 2-0 Eagle lead and scored four unanswered runs before a solo shot by Victor Roache (Ypsilanti, Mich.) brought the Eagles within a run.
GSU threatened in the ninth inning and attempted a two-out rally. The Eagles took advantage of two wild pitches in the ninth inning to move a pair of runners into scoring position with two outs, but a strikeout ended the game without a run scoring.
Shawn Payne (Stone Mountain, Ga.) extended his reached-base streak to 46 games after a RBI single in the second inning and a walk in the ninth. The senior outfielder is tied with Ronnie Freeman of Kennesaw State. Freeman had a double in the Owls game with Western Carolina today. The Eagles and KSU will meet next Tuesday at J.I. Clements Stadium.
Matt Grimes earned his third win of the season for Georgia Tech after allowing two runs on four hits. Grimes struck out four batters in six innings. Luke Bard pitched the final three innings to earn his second save of the season. Bard struck out five batters and allowed one run on two hits.
Georgia Southern got off to a quick start, scoring single runs in the first two innings of the game, but two unearned runs put the Yellow Jackets up 4-2 after four innings of play. Both pitching staffs settled down in the fifth inning and cruised until the seventh inning.
Justin Hess (Panama City, Fla.) entered in relief of GSU starter Jarret Leverett (Eatonton, Ga.) in the fourth inning and faced the minimum in the next three innings keeping the game within reach. Roache pulled the Eagles within one run when he sent a 3-2 pitch deep over the centerfield wall in the seventh inning to put the score at 4-3 Yellow Jackets.
Leverett made his third start of the season and had a better outing than his first two, but was tagged with his third loss. The junior pitcher allowed two earned runs on five hits in 3.2 innings and struck out three batters. Hess ran into trouble in the eighth inning after a walk and a base hit put runners on first and second base with no outs. He struck out two batters and fielded a throw from at first base for the final out of the inning.
After two quick outs to start the first inning, Eric Phillips (Carrollton, Ga.) stroked a double down the left-field line. A wild pitch and a RBI-single by Steve Cochrane (Mooresville, N.C.) brought Phillips around third for the first run of the game.
The Eagles tacked on a second run in the top of the second inning, but Georgia Tech matched with an unearned run in the bottom half of the inning. Tom Richardson (Lilburn, Ga.) led off the second inning with a base hit and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Ben Morgan (Evans, Ga.). Payne plated Richardson from third base.
A two-out double by Jacob Esch tied the game before a triple by Brandon Thomas gave the Yellow Jackets their first lead of the game in the third inning. Leverett stranded Thomas at third base after striking out Jake Davies at the plate.
Georgia Tech added another unearned run in the fourth inning, after a misplay by the shortstop allowed DaAndre Smelter to score from third with two outs. Hess entered following the error, but would have to wait until the fifth inning to face a batter after Kyle Wren became the second Yellow Jacket caught stealing in the inning. Hess set down the side in order in the fifth inning. The unearned run in the second inning scored after an error in the outfield allowed a two-out run to score from first base.
Georgia Southern and #21 Georgia Tech will meet again tomorrow at 4 p.m. in the finale of the four-game series. The Eagles will travel to Samford following the game and will face the Bulldogs in a three-game series this weekend.
All games can be heard on Eagle 102.9 FM in Statesboro and are also available online at GeorgiaSouthernEagles.com/Eaglevision beginning 30 minutes prior to first pitch. Ryan Chambers of the Georgia Southern Radio Network will call all the action.
Fans may follow Georgia Southern Baseball by visiting GeorgiaSouthernEagles.com/baseball or check in at twitter.com/GSAthletics or facebook.com/GSAthletics for short updates.
GSU threatened in the ninth inning and attempted a two-out rally. The Eagles took advantage of two wild pitches in the ninth inning to move a pair of runners into scoring position with two outs, but a strikeout ended the game without a run scoring.
Shawn Payne (Stone Mountain, Ga.) extended his reached-base streak to 46 games after a RBI single in the second inning and a walk in the ninth. The senior outfielder is tied with Ronnie Freeman of Kennesaw State. Freeman had a double in the Owls game with Western Carolina today. The Eagles and KSU will meet next Tuesday at J.I. Clements Stadium.
Matt Grimes earned his third win of the season for Georgia Tech after allowing two runs on four hits. Grimes struck out four batters in six innings. Luke Bard pitched the final three innings to earn his second save of the season. Bard struck out five batters and allowed one run on two hits.
Georgia Southern got off to a quick start, scoring single runs in the first two innings of the game, but two unearned runs put the Yellow Jackets up 4-2 after four innings of play. Both pitching staffs settled down in the fifth inning and cruised until the seventh inning.
Justin Hess (Panama City, Fla.) entered in relief of GSU starter Jarret Leverett (Eatonton, Ga.) in the fourth inning and faced the minimum in the next three innings keeping the game within reach. Roache pulled the Eagles within one run when he sent a 3-2 pitch deep over the centerfield wall in the seventh inning to put the score at 4-3 Yellow Jackets.
Leverett made his third start of the season and had a better outing than his first two, but was tagged with his third loss. The junior pitcher allowed two earned runs on five hits in 3.2 innings and struck out three batters. Hess ran into trouble in the eighth inning after a walk and a base hit put runners on first and second base with no outs. He struck out two batters and fielded a throw from at first base for the final out of the inning.
After two quick outs to start the first inning, Eric Phillips (Carrollton, Ga.) stroked a double down the left-field line. A wild pitch and a RBI-single by Steve Cochrane (Mooresville, N.C.) brought Phillips around third for the first run of the game.
The Eagles tacked on a second run in the top of the second inning, but Georgia Tech matched with an unearned run in the bottom half of the inning. Tom Richardson (Lilburn, Ga.) led off the second inning with a base hit and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Ben Morgan (Evans, Ga.). Payne plated Richardson from third base.
A two-out double by Jacob Esch tied the game before a triple by Brandon Thomas gave the Yellow Jackets their first lead of the game in the third inning. Leverett stranded Thomas at third base after striking out Jake Davies at the plate.
Georgia Tech added another unearned run in the fourth inning, after a misplay by the shortstop allowed DaAndre Smelter to score from third with two outs. Hess entered following the error, but would have to wait until the fifth inning to face a batter after Kyle Wren became the second Yellow Jacket caught stealing in the inning. Hess set down the side in order in the fifth inning. The unearned run in the second inning scored after an error in the outfield allowed a two-out run to score from first base.
Georgia Southern and #21 Georgia Tech will meet again tomorrow at 4 p.m. in the finale of the four-game series. The Eagles will travel to Samford following the game and will face the Bulldogs in a three-game series this weekend.
All games can be heard on Eagle 102.9 FM in Statesboro and are also available online at GeorgiaSouthernEagles.com/Eaglevision beginning 30 minutes prior to first pitch. Ryan Chambers of the Georgia Southern Radio Network will call all the action.
Fans may follow Georgia Southern Baseball by visiting GeorgiaSouthernEagles.com/baseball or check in at twitter.com/GSAthletics or facebook.com/GSAthletics for short updates.
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