Box Score
JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – Joe Gunkel tossed a complete-game, four-hit shutout to lead West Chester to a 5-0 win over California (Pa.) in the opening game of the 2013 PSAC Baseball Tournament at Point Stadium Wednesday afternoon.
West Chester (23-23-1) got another steller postseason performance out of Gunkel while taking down the No. 1 seed out of the Western Division in Cal (33-17). The Golden Rams advance into the winners’ bracket and will face Kutztown at 3:30 p.m. on Thursday. Kutztown defeated Mercyhurst, 6-1, in the first game of the day.
Gunkel (7-4) pitched his third straight shutout in the playoffs, dating back to last season, while increasing his postseason consecutive scoreless innings streak to 30. Gunkel has not been scored upon since Mercyhurst plated a run in the sixth inning of a PSAC Tournament game last year. Gunkel improved to 4-0 all-time in the playoffs with a 0.25 ERA. He has allowed just 18 hits and walked just five batters in 36 postseason innings.
Chris Pula went 5-for-5 with a pair of RBI and a pair of runs scored. Jordan Wlodarczyk was 2-for-5 with a pair of RBI as well. That duo got things going early when Pula singled home Mike Raimo, and Woody followed with a two-run double to left-center, plating Lamborn and Pula, to make it 3-0 after one.
Pula smacked his third home run of the season to left-center in the third to increase the lead to 4-0, and Nick Bonadies drew a bases-loaded walk in the fifth to close out all the scoring Gunekl would need. The junior right-hander threw 102 pitches, 76 for strikes. He struck out seven.
Rob Spekhardt finished the day 2-for-3 while Jack Provine and Lamborn each registered a hit as well.
West Chester scored five runs on 11 hits in the win. The Rams left 10 runners on base. Cal managed just four hits and left eight runners on in the loss.
The win upped West Chester’s postseason winning streak to 13 games. The Golden Rams last lost in the postseason a year ago to Kutztown (4-2) in the second round of the PSAC Tournament in Butler, Pa. WCU carries a 14-inning scoreless streak into tomorrow’s second round contest. Catawba was the last team to score on the Rams in last year’s national semifinal. West Chester has allowed just one run in its last three playoff games.
