Box Score
PHILADELPHIA, Pa. - West Chester University scored five runs in the top of the ninth inning to come from behind and beat Wilmington (Del.), 8-4, in the 9th annual Bill Giles Invitational Championship Game at Citizens Bank Park on the South Side Thursday evening in the regular-season finale for the Golden Rams.
West Chester (39-10), the top seed in the Eastern Division in the upcoming PSAC postseason tournament next Monday thru Thursday, captured the school's sixth overall Bill Giles title since the invitational began in 2001. Wilmington (22-26) dropped its fourth game in five tries against the Rams this spring.
Charlie Kelly, Kyle Orensky and Joe Wendle hit back-to-back-to-back doubles in the ninth to erase a one-run deficit and propel West Chester to the victory. Bob Stumpo, Josh Heyne and Kevin McGrath then followed with consecutive singles, and Nick Spisak hit an RBI groundout to complete the five-run frame.
Eric Carmichael (3-0) pitched the eighth and ninth for his third win of the year. He gave up one hit and struck out four, including all three batters in the eighth, as the seventh pitcher of the night for West Chester.
Dan Levin was tagged for all five runs in the ninth and collared with the loss. He was the ninth pitcher of the night for the Wildcats.
Matt Cotellese hit his eighth home run of the season in the first inning, clearing the 335 sign down the left field line. In his next at bat in the third, Cotellese flew out to center field on the warning track in front of the State Farm sign at the 409 marker.
"I hit the second ball harder than the first," Cotellese said. "If we were playing in Serpico today, there would have been about six home runs."
Kevin McGrath cleared the flower bed in left field just above the Bud Light ad in the third inning for his sixth home run of the season. That gave the Golden Rams a brief 2-1 advantage.
Orensky flew out to center field in almost the exact same spot as Cotellese in the second. His double down the left-field line in the ninth hit off the angled wall underneath the foul pole inches from the top of the fence.
Kelly's fly to left field in the sixth also tested the dimensions of the major league park, but was just shy of the blue seats.
Wendle, Stumpo, Kelly and McGrath all finished with a pair of hits. Wendle scored twice, and McGrath picked up two RBI.
The Bill Giles Championship was a good tune-up for the 2009 PSAC Tournament, which gets under way Monday morning at 9 a.m. at Clipper Magazine Stadium in Lancaster, Pa. West Chester meets Lock Haven at 12:30 p.m. in the second game. Lock Haven (21-31) finished fourth in the Western Division.
